


Your Reputation Precedes You

by Anime_or_scifi



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - College/University, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, College Student Eren Yeager, Dirty Talk, Flirting, Long-Haired Eren Yeager, M/M, More tags to be added, Rating will go up, Rough Sex, Smut, Spanking, Teacher! Levi, Teacher-Student Relationship, art student! Eren, inappropriate behavior from a teacher
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-30
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2020-07-26 00:20:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 33,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20034730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anime_or_scifi/pseuds/Anime_or_scifi
Summary: Eren never intended to go to college, but after being encouraged by his best friend, he becomes an art major. One of his teachers, Professor Levi Ackerman, has been known to be particularly harsh and blunt with his students, but he seems to only be calm and helpful with Eren. And maybe a little more fond of him than most of his students.





	1. First Contact

**Author's Note:**

> It's been ridiculously long since I've posted anything, but I've been wicked busy. 
> 
> I'd like to be consistent with this fic, but I make no promises. I have a few chapters written out, but I want to space them out a bit. 
> 
> Oh yeah, worth mentioning: this fic is gonna get angsty. Like, bad times are a-comin'. This is going to be sad. Lmao. (No sad endings, just sad most of middle)
> 
> I didn't edit, I apologize for errors. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy.
> 
> Enjoy!

"You need to get a haircut, you look like a metal head."

Eren bat his friend Mikasa's hand away from his bangs. "Shut up, I like my hair long." 

"Yeah, I get that, and you can keep it long, but it's hanging in front your face so bad you look like Cousin It." Mikasa took the elastic band out of her own hair and turned Eren around. "Bend your knees."

Eren complied, letting her tie up his hair. Once finished. He straightened out and turned back to face her, only to see her frown.

"Damn, I missed most of your bangs."

"Good."

"Well, keep them out of your eyes, you'll need them to see well in this class. Would be best if you'd just cut them."

Eren glanced at the people entering the classroom that they were just outside of. It was his first college class, a bit intimidating to say the least. "You said this professor is strict?"

"That's what I've heard, but I don't know for sure. I had a different professor for figure drawing, but don't let that deter you. You're a good artist and don't forget it, but you can do nothing but benefit from his criticism." Mikasa patted her friend's shoulder reassuringly. "But that doesn't mean accept bullshit when you hear it."

"I know..." Eren mumbled.

"You'll be fine. I gotta go to color theory."

"Okay," Eren sighed. "Have fun."

"You too."

He watched his friend go, and stood nervously outside the classroom. Now with his support system gone, he had no choice but to enter alone with all his nerves. He took a deep breath and waltzed in, finding twelve or so other students standing around, waiting for the professor to arrive. 

The room was wide and open. There were no real desks or chairs, which made sense for the nature of the class. Only a small, wooden, elevated area, easels and drawing horses stacked in the corner. There were a few skylights, scattered posters of master artists' works to serve as inspiration, and a skeleton near the professors desk, to serve as reference. Eren didn't know what to expect, but the environment seemed pretty agreeable so far. 

He scanned the class over and tried to estimate everyone's age. Most of the students looked to be fresh out of high school. One or two appeared to be older than him, or perhaps his age. Since he'd taken two years off after graduating high school, he assumed he'd be just a tad bit older than many of his classmates. In all honesty, he didn't ever plan on going to college, but after seeing how much fun Mikasa was having at college and watching her thrive, he didn't suppose trying it out would hurt. So, at the ripe age of nineteen, he enrolled.

After a few moments, the door was shut, grabbing everyone's attention. In came their professor. And oh, did Eren seriously misjudge what he'd look like. For some reason he pictured him to be an older, wise looking man, with a beard and salt and pepper hair. But this man looked to be in his mid, if not late thirties, seemed decently fit with a good physique and strong facial features. If anything gave away his age, it would've been his eyes, considering how perpetually exhausted they looked. He wore a blue button up shirt, sleeves rolled up to the elbows with black slacks. He looked... professional.

"Good morning, everyone," the professor prompted, standing at the chalk board. 

The class responded with half-assed "good mornings." 

"Welcome to figure drawing, I'm your instructor for the semester, Levi Ackerman, but you will address me as Professor Ackerman." He didn't speak in an overly warm and welcoming tone, but it wasn't exactly cold either. He didn't sound like their teacher, more like a business partner in Eren's opinion.

"I'm gonna hand out a syllabus before the end of class for you to read at your own leisure. I'm not gonna go through it, it's not any different from what you'll get in the rest of your classes. Instead I'm gonna go through my own personal rules for this class. First," he counted, holding up a finger, pacing in slow motion. "You will not show up in pajamas, this is a professional environment. Respect the space, I want you to show up how you would go to work."

"That changes depending on where we work," someone behind Eren whispered, drawing out laughter from the people surrounding them.

The teacher looked at them in annoyance. As he started to look away, his eyes lingered on Eren a bit. Longer than he had glanced at the disruptive students behind him. 

"Second. You will not touch the models. Period. If they've changed position, just let me know and we'll get them back to where they were. Third, you will set up your own station each class, and you will put everything back before you leave." 

So far, Eren didn't think his rules were unreasonable. This guy didn't sound like the hard ass everyone made him out to be. 

"You will not be graded against each other. You will not be graded by how 'good' you are. I'm grading you in comparison to your own work and how well you take critique. If you apply what you learn and just do the work, you're going to have a good grade. You don't need to be Rembrandt to get an A."

That came as some relief to many of the students. 

"Due to the nature of this class, the door will be locked whenever a model is in a session. If you need to leave for whatever reason and come back, knock and I'll let you in. Now, I'm gonna give a brief demo, and then we'll get started."

~

Eren was a little surprised that they got to work, sketching nude models on the first day, but he wasn't opposed to it. They'd all gotten rough contour sketches of the model and had their first peer critique, with Professor Ackerman jumping in every now and then of course.

Professor Ackerman circled the sketches laid out on the ground after the review and stared at a few sketches in particular. He rubbed his hands together in thought. "This one... this one, the one on the top far right corner, and... the one to its left. Whoever those belong to, put your names on them and pin them up on the board. Good work today, everyone. I'll see you all on Thursday, we'll expand on our contour studies." He retreated back to his desk while his students either hung up their work or cleaned up their stations. 

Eren took the longest to leave, waiting until he had space to pin up his art. Everyone else had either been gone or was heading out the door. He struggled to reach the top of his paper to stick in the tack, and just as he pushed it through, he heard shuffling steps behind him. Stepping back to see his work, he sighed heavily, already tired after his first class.

"What's your major?"

Eren spun around, slightly startled, then calmed after seeing it was only his teacher. "Um— illustration."

Professor Ackerman nodded. "Ah, then that means I'm your advisor too. I'm the advisor for all the illustration majors. So, if you need anything regarding your courses, you can come to me."

"Oh great, thank you." At least now there was no confusion for Eren as to where to go when it came time to schedule for the next semester.

Levi nodded. "... Would love to see how much better your work would be if you could see properly."

Eren raised a brow at him. "Huh?"

"Your hair. It's hanging in front of your eyes, I don't know how you could stand it." 

Eren laughed. "Oh, that. You sound a lot like my best friend."

"Do they tell you the same thing?"

"Yeah, my friend Mikasa says I should cut it." Eren took a strand between his fingers, inspecting it for a couple seconds. 

"You just need to see is all. I don't think you have to cut it, but just..." He brushed Eren's bangs aside, tucking them behind his ear. "Keep it clear." 

Eren stared, wide eyed.

Levi smirked at him, walking back to his desk. "I'll see you on Thursday."

Eren shook himself out of his thoughts. "Uh... yeah, I'll see you then." He hurried to pick up all his things so he could get to his next class on time.

~

Eren didn't stop thinking about that small gesture for the rest of the day. It wasn't that he minded or felt uncomfortable by it, that wasn't the case at all. But rather, he couldn't help but wonder if a professor was allowed to do that. Sure, it was a small touch, not sexual in the least and definitely not forceful, but Eren was under the impression that professors could not touch their students at all beyond a hand shake or a hug if one had grown close to a professor over the years, and even that was not common to him. Was he overthinking it? It was a little touch. Nothing more. It didn't mean anything. His professor was just encouraging him to not obstruct his vision. Right? It would make sense for a class where detail was everything. Eren wasn't sure.

Eren was torn from his thoughts when a grape hit him in the face.

"Eren."

"Sorry, what?" He rubbed his cheek where the grape had hit.

Mikasa rolled her eyes. "I said, did you make any friends?"

"Oh... um, I don't think so. Didn't really have the time to talk to anyone, just wanted to survive the first day, you know?"

Mikasa nodded, taking a bite of her dinner. "Fair."

Eren couldn't help it. He had to know if he was crazy. "Um, Mikasa? Do you think... is it not allowed... can professors touch their students?"

Mikasa frowned at him. "In what way?" she asked with a mouth full of food.

"Not like that." Eren rolled his eyes. "Just like... small things. Like not hitting, not feeling them up, just... I don't know like... if they have lint on their shirt and they go to take it off."

"I don't know, the professor should just say 'hey, you got something on your shirt.' Why, did someone touch you?"

Eren shook his head, lying. "No... I thought I saw it, could've been a really short teacher and not a student."

"Oh. Well, regardless, even if it is something small like that, you shouldn't let a professor touch you, they could get in serious trouble for that. Don't let anyone touch you without your consent for that matter."

"I know..." 

~

Levi was the type of professor to hover. During longer drawing sessions, he'd come around to give tips on what the students could improve, or what they needed to pay attention to to avoid making mistakes. This was when what Eren had been told came into play. Levi had a very trained eye and was incredibly picky. He could point out a hundred flaws in anyone's art if only he was given the time. With some students, he'd stay beside them longer when they needed the extra help. With the more advanced ones, he'd only point out a couple areas where they'd over-exaggerated a line, maybe didn't have something shaded in enough to show depth. Eren was more advanced in Levi's book.

The most nerve wracking thing of all, even worse than having a million complaints was when Levi would stand behind or beside them and not say anything at all. They didn't know if they were doing just fine or if they were doing so poorly that it was a lost cause. 

Today, Levi was silent behind Eren.

Eren sketched away, trying to get the forearm of the model the right length. He wished Levi would say something, anything, or at least walk away so he could work in peace. 

His professor remained where he was for a concerning amount of time.

He couldn't take it anymore.

"What's wrong with it?" He asked nervously, facing Levi.

Levi raised his brows in surprise. "... Nothing yet. Are you struggling?"

"Um... no."

"Then keep working." He patted Eren's shoulder, walking past him. "Ease up, you're doing fine."

Eren shivered at the contact. He still didn't know if that was frowned upon.

"If your drawing was a real person," Levi noted on another students work. "His neck wouldn't be able to support his head, it would snap right off his body." A little harsh, Eren noted. "Thicken it up," he said before walking off to another student.

~

Levi came back around to Eren's easel, this time studying his student instead of his work, but Eren was too focused to notice.

"Is that a tree?"

Eren looked over at Levi. "... What?"

"Is that a tree?" Levi repeated.

Eren looked at his sketch. It couldn't have been that bad, right? He pointed at the paper with his pencil. "... A... tr—"

"No, no." Levi gestured to Eren. When he only received a blank stare, he reached out. "Here." He tugged at Eren's sleeve, pulling it up his forearm, then after immediately realizing his error, jerked his hand away. "Oh— I'm sorry..." But it was enough to clue the student in.

"Oh! My tattoo," Eren said. He pulled up his sleeve enough for him to see. "It's a bird."

"Ah, well your sleeve was covering most of it, I confused the feet for roots. Sorry about that... who did it?"

"A friend of mine. He works at the shop down the street. You know the one?"

Levi nodded. "Yeah, I know them..." He gazed at the ink for a few moments longer, appreciating the artistry. "That's really nice." And with that, he moved on.

Eren stared in his wake. At this point, he accepted that Levi must've been a really touchy person. In that case, it made his mistake of lightly tugging at his shirt all the more amusing. He just wanted to see his tattoo. If anything, Eren found that more cute than alarming. Maybe this professor wasn't as bad as his reputation made him out to be.


	2. Ignored

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's impatient? Me, bitch
> 
> I meant to wait a week to upload another chapter but I couldn't do it

Eren wasn't numb to Levi's little touches, quite the opposite. He appreciated them. He hadn't observed Levi wandering around the other students, so he wasn't certain if he was the only person he was so handsy with, but he liked to think that he was, though he wasn't sure why. He liked to think that every bit of contact was personal, perhaps praising him for doing so well in the class. But after examining these thoughts, he wondered if that was a dangerous thing to think. Should he have been allowing this? It was a month into the semester, maybe he should tell someone.

Today, he wore his hair down, which he was starting to regret. He kept blowing upwards and pushing it back only for it all to fall in his face over and over again. 

A girl beside him offered her spare hair tie. "Dude, honestly just take this."

Eren gratefully accepted. "Thanks..."

"Annie."

"Right, Annie."

"Don't mention it. You huffing to keep your hair out of the way was too distracting, I'm doing this for me."

Eren chuckled. He supposed she was right, he was being a bit disruptive.

After the peer review, Eren's art made it onto the wall again. He was used to this routine, him and a couple of the other students were regulars on the wall. He took a little too long to pack up and was left as the last one again.

"Lucky Annie was able to spare you a tie, huh?" Levi mused from his desk, eyes glued to his computer.

Eren slung his art bag over his shoulder, walking over to Levi. "Yeah, can't believe I forgot to bring one. Was I that distracting?"

Levi smirked at him for a second. "I'd say so. I will say though, your hair looks nice when it's down too."

Eren felt a blush creep onto his cheeks, confusing him thoroughly. "Thanks..."

"Should still keep it up though, specifically for this class."

Eren nodded. "Right, gotta be able to see, heh."

Levi looked at him directly. "Well... that, and it'd be nice to see your face."

All the air in Eren's lungs vanished. He didn't know what his teacher meant by that and for some reason, his pulse sped up. He didn't know what he was feeling. "Professor Ackerman...?"

Levi turned back to his computer. "I got another class in here soon, you know?"

"O-Oh, right. I'll get out of your hair then." Eren took a couple steps back. 

Levi's head didn't move but his gaze returned to Eren as he sent him a wink before looking back at the screen.

Eren blinked a few times. Was he imagining that? Did his professor just wink at him? He was sure of what he saw but he couldn't process it. So, instead of questioning the other man, he turned around and left, his heart skipping a beat.

~

Eren got ready for class the next week with his heart racing. He couldn't put words to his feelings, but he wanted to maintain his professors attention. He wanted him to talk to him, he didn't care much what he was saying, he just wanted to be noticed again. He searched around his dorm for any extra hair pins, anything that would keep his bangs in place.

"Mikasa?" 

His friend turned from her own desk, pausing her makeup routine. "Hm?"

"Do you have extra bobby pins? Or barrettes? Anything?"

"Yup." She pawed through her desk drawer and tossed him a pack of bobby pins. "Finally listening to me a keeping your mop out of your eyes?"

"I guess I am."

~

Eren didn't know why he bothered. Maybe Levi's comment really did mean nothing. The teacher barely stopped over to offer any kind of advice during sessions, he hadn't spoken two words to him, no lingering touches, nothing. Levi had said that it would be nice to see Eren's face, and here it was, clear of hair for the first time and it didn't provoke anything from him.

Perhaps Levi didn't care for the man's features as much as he thought he would. Maybe his words were just teasing him to begin with. Whatever the case, Eren was distracted and frustrated throughout the entirety of class. A couple of his classmates complimented him, Annie said she liked his hair like that. He thanked them all, but he wanted those words to come from his teacher. He couldn't understand why he craved the man's attention so badly, he just knew he liked the way he felt when he had it. 

Levi stopped by right before they needed to finish up. "Sloppy today, don't you think?"

Eren knitted his brows together. "Sloppy?"

"Her leg doesn't come out that far, she looks off balance. You don't have enough time to fix it this class, next time pay more attention to how the model is distributing their weight."

Eren grew more annoyed and just finished his work angrily right before the timer went off, signaling that the model no longer needed to pose. He could've been told that before at any other point in the class so he didn't spend so much time on an unsuccessful piece. 

Peer review was finished and for the first time, Eren's art didn't make it on the wall. He felt so irked. Maybe he'd been too distracted. Maybe he wasn't as good as he previously thought. Maybe he'd been making assumptions.

He put away his paper in his art bag, fuming and trying to ignore how upset he felt, trying to convince himself he was overreacting. 

As everyone else was exiting, Eren slung his bag over his shoulder, and Levi gently caressed the back of Eren's arm as he walked past him, whispering so no one else could hear, "you look really good today." 

Eren turned to look at him but Levi was just making his way to his desk. He didn't imagine that, he was sure of it. And he was certain this time that there was something implied in the tender stroke of a hand. And he thought he liked it. He followed Levi and spoke just as the last student left. "Professor, was my work that bad today?"

Levi sat down, but stared up at Eren in confusion. "... I'm sorry?"

"Was it so bad?"

Levi frowned. "No, it was good as always. Just a couple things that needed tweaking, that's all."

Eren started to feel foolish for confronting him. 

"... Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"No..." Eren bit his lip. "Thank you for the critique." He turned on his feel to leave. He was about to take a step, then thought this was as good a time as any and faced his teacher again. "Actually... There's something I've been meaning to ask you."

Levi reclined in his chair. "Okay, shoot."

"Um... why are you always... touching me? Is it an accident?" He wanted to provide an excuse so Levi could continue to do it if he pleased. 

Levi paused, careful about how he answered. "Do you not like it?"

Eren gulped, unsure of how to respond and not seem overenthusiastic. "... I don't have a problem with it. I was just wondering..."

The corner of Levi's mouth quirked up. "Didn't realize I'd been doing it. So sorry, Eren." He was lying and the other could tell. He wouldn't have dodged the question by asking if Eren wasn't fond of it if it had been unintentional. He would've answered him immediately. His student could tell this by the smug composure he kept. This was no apology. He did not say 'I'm sorry,' he said 'I'm glad you noticed, I will be doing it again.' The message was well conveyed. 

Suddenly, Eren didn't feel upset anymore. He'd gotten the attention he wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't edit, so I apologize for any mistakes. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	3. Lesson Learned

This was getting bad. Eren would do nearly anything if it meant Levi would give him a longer glance, let his hand rest on him a bit longer. He considered the notion that he was just touched starved and that's why he was acting this way. He wasn't getting this kind of treatment from anyone else, he'd take it as long as Levi was willing to give it. He may have lost a bit of respect for himself along the way, tailoring how he presented himself, how he acted, his pace in drawing, anything that would bring his professor near.

"Eren, stay for a minute."

Eren obeyed, he wouldn't think of going against what he'd been told. 

"What kind of work have you been doing in you other classes? What mediums are you using?"

Eren shrugged, finding that to be an odd question. "Not much of anything that we don't use in this class. I'm using watercolor for my next foundation design project, but we're mostly using charcoal and colored pencil. Why?"

"You have a tendency to be really light handed when you work. It can sometimes be hard to see the values since everything you do is high key. I'm wondering if that would change if you'd just use a different medium. Aside from watercolors, have you ever used or considered using acrylics or oil paint?"

Eren shrugged. "I've used acrylics, but that was years ago."

"Hm... I think you should give them another shot. It's a quick way to apply value. Your work is good in structure, we just need you to work on depth. I'm thinking of assigning you a side project to see how you take to paint. Nothing major, nothing that'll interfere with other work. Just something to see your technique."

"I'd be up for that... it's just that I don't really have any acrylics."

"I can lend you some," Levi waved him off. "You know... the best acrylics are the handmade ones, not the factory distributed ones. You ever tried making your own medium? It helps you understand how pigments mix."

"I don't think I have. Besides, I wouldn't know how to go about making paint..." 

Levi folded his arms over his chest. "I could teach you. It's not overly hard and I have more than enough supplies to give you a demonstration until you get the hang of it. Is that something you'd be interested in?"

"Yeah, definitely."

Levi grinned. "Good. I'll email you more details, just respond with when you're available."

~

"Mikasa, can I borrow your car?" Eren asked, picking up his bag, getting ready to leave his dorm. 

Mikasa set down her sketchbook on her bed. "Sure, what do you need it for?"

"Driving."

"Duh," Mikasa rolled her eyes. "Where are you going?"

"Not far, Ackerman offered to teach me how to make acrylics from scratch."

"That's cool! Where are you meeting him? Is it like a workshop or something?"

Eren grabbed his friend's keys and slipped on his shoes. "Nah, it's just me. I'm going to his place for the afternoon. He said I need to work on my values and maybe—"

"Wait," Mikasa interrupted. "You're going to his house?"

Eren shrugged. "Yeah, but it's just down the road, it's no big deal."

Mikasa stared for a moment, concerned. "Eren... I'm not sure if that's a good idea."

"What? Why?"

Mikasa shook her head, standing up and walking over to her roommate. "I don't know. He's an adult and you'll be there alone with him. I know you're an adult too and you can take care of yourself, but it just feels sketchy, you know?"

"Pfft." Eren rolled his eyes, walking over to the door. "What's he gonna do, kidnap me? He's a teacher. Besides, you know I'll be there, so if something goes wrong, you know who's to blame."

"I'm not saying he's gonna kidnap you, but what if... you know."

Eren frowned. "... No, I don't know."

Mikasa gestured with her hands. "It's... it's not uncommon, unfortunately, for college professors to take advantage of their students."

"... I'm not following you."

Mikasa shook her head. "Eren, you can be so thick sometimes. He might make a pass at you." She held her hand up, seeing that her friend looked offended and wanted to interject. "I'm serious. You're young, you're attractive, and let's face it, you're gullible as shit."

"Hey!"

"It's true and you know it."

Eren thought about it. He didn't want to think that his professor was a bad guy. And he didn't want to think that he'd be too blind to see it if that was the case. He didn't want to be vulnerable. "He's not gonna do anything. If he does, I'll get out of there and I'll tell someone." Before his friend could protest further, he left. 

He drove feeling a little more heated than he knew he should've. Mikasa was just looking out for him, but to imply that Levi had bad intentions? That upset him. Levi was a good person. An honest person. He cared about his students, Eren was sure of it. 

The drive was short. After planning details following their most recent class, Levi gave Eren his number to send him his address, not wanting to have that sent through email. 

Eren liked Levi's house from the outside. It wasn't enormous by any means, but it was stylish and well kept. He left the car, ringing the door bell, reminding himself to calm down. He was there to learn, and his teacher was a good person. And Mikasa just worried too much. He repeated these things in his head until the door opened, revealing a more casually dressed Levi. 

"Right on time, Eren." Levi stood in a long sleeve t-shirt and jeans, stepping out of the way to allow his student in. 

"I love your house," Eren commented, taking in the view as he entered. He slipped off his shoes in the designated area and observed his surroundings. Everything was so tidy. 

"Thank you." Levi shut the door, leading the other out of the entryway. 

Eren knew he was going to be fine.

~

Eren watched Levi grind fine pebbles with a mortar and pestle and tried to keep up. So far, Levi had kept his word and did exactly as they'd planned. His professor explained where to find raw pigments in nature and how to break them down. At this point, the two were making the minerals into a powder and Eren couldn't wait to tell Mikasa 'I told you so.'

"How long do we do this for?" Eren asked, seeing that he was significantly behind Levi in the process.

"Basically until all the little pieces are gone. We don't need lumps in our paint."

Eren sighed, his arm getting tired. "I don't know if I'm doing it right."

Levi set down his materials and took Eren's mortar and pestle from him. "You got the basic idea, I can finish. You were doing it right, you just have apply a lot of pressure."

Eren watched his teacher work. His gaze creeped up Levi's arm and settled on his forearm. With the sleeves rolled up, and with the intense work he was doing, he could see how strong Levi really was. His biceps also showed evidence that whether it was crushing up stones for paint or a regular visit to the gym, the work was paying off. His hands had always been so gentle when handling his student, Eren wondered what it'd feel like if he applied more force. He wasn't sure why his mind went down that road, but the thought had him biting his lip at the possibility.

Levi paused to see if Eren was paying attention, but the expression he was making at him took his mind to other places. 

Eren was so deep in thought, he was just barely aware of what was happening when Levi set down the supplies and gently grabbed the back of his head, pulling him in for a prolonged kiss. 

He froze.

Too many things were going through his mind. He felt like he should've pushed Levi away, but he didn't really want to. This felt like a release, like this was the thing all those subtle touches and quiet comments were leading up to. Before he knew it, he was melting into the kiss, reciprocating everything Levi was doing. His heart was going a million miles a minute and he was sure that his face must've been beet red at this point. But nothing in him wanted this to end. This was that feeling he craved. This is what he wanted from his professor. Not an adoring comment, not a look from across the room, but direct affection with no room for misinterpretation. 

Eren was the one to break the kiss. He pulled back, still mere centimeters from Levi. He panted, overwhelmed by that look of want that the other man was giving him. "... What are you doing?" A stupid question, he thought, but he truly did not see this coming.

"I thought we were on the same page," Levi breathed. "I thought you knew why I really invited you here."

"I didn't..."

"You seemed to get the message and return it all this time... did something change along the way?" Levi backed up a step, only for Eren to close there distance again.

"I didn't realize this is what all that meant... but now that I know, I don't have a problem with it."

Levi smirked. "Let's get one thing clear. No one can know about this little... arrangement we have, got it?"

Eren nodded obediently. 

"Good." Levi gave the other another kiss. "Now, let's go somewhere a little more comfortable."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please leave a comment or kudos if you did!
> 
> I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. Thanks for reading!


	4. Intimate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sex scenes are not my strong suit, be warned

They'd barely made it to Levi's bedroom. They couldn't take their hands off each other. As they made it upstairs and to the bed, they were already occupied with discarding each other's clothes, leaving nothing but their boxers left.

Levi's hands were practically glued to Eren's skin, touching him anywhere he could reach. He appreciated his darker, tan complexion and his slender frame, gripping harder than he would ever consider doing in class. He'd wanted to see his student like this since he first saw him and now seeing him so exposed, he couldn't hold back anymore. 

Eren had gotten a good look at Levi before they resumed their earlier kiss. While he knew that Levi was in good shape, he much preferred being able to see and feel every muscle, every limb, without clothes in the way. And when Levi pressed him down into the bed, laying on top of him, all he could think of was how much better this was than the gentle, brief touches in passing. This was what he really wanted.

Levi moved to nibble at Eren's ear, drawing a moan from the other. 

"Fuck..." Eren breathed. "Professor Ack—"

"No," Levi said sitting back to see his student. "Call me Levi." He wasn't fond of the idea of someone being so formal while he was intimate with them. 

Eren nodded, panting heavily. "Levi..."

Levi returned to leave kisses and bites on Eren's neck where he was sensitive, letting his hands roam lower. "God, your body's beautiful," he murmured. Levi, being an artist and a figure drawing instructor, was a man fixated on detail. And he spent a considerable amount of time admiring the details of Eren's form. He loved his strong jawline, his pointed hip bones, his nimble fingers, his broad shoulders. Everything.

Eren latched his hand onto Levi's back and the other onto his arm, squeezing to feel his bicep. "Touch me," he begged.

Levi obliged, sliding one hand down beneath the other's boxers. Eren let out a soft moan into Levi's ear at the sensation of the other man enclosing his hand around his length, stroking him gently.

In the back of Eren's mind, he knew this was bad. He could get in a lot of trouble. Levi could get fired god forbid anyone found out. For a man so concerned with professionalism, he was the furthest thing from a maintaining a professional relationship with his student at the moment. If Eren thought about it too long, it would scare him to process how wrong this was on many levels. So, he ignored it.

Eventually, Levi sat back, removing Eren's boxers, then discarding his own. With the kind of job Levi had, seeing someone nude for the first time was not thrilling to him as it was in the past. He cared more about interesting silhouettes, and parts of the body that weren't inherently sexual until they were played up that way. And while the sight of the man under him being exposed did not disrupt his thought process, or make him drool, he did appreciate every inch of skin that was new to him. 

Eren, on the other hand, could feel his pulse quicken after seeing Levi uncovered for the first time. He had no idea this whole time that this was where they would inevitably end up, and he definitely didn't know how badly he'd been wanting this until he had it. He was too busy staring to realize, Levi was in the process of rolling on a condom and coating his fingers with lube. He only tuned back into reality when Levi was lifting one of his legs over his shoulder, teasing his entrance with a finger.

"Are you ready?" Levi asked.

Eren nodded, adjusting himself to get comfortable. "Yeah." His head rolled back and he shut his eyes, mouth dropping open as Levi stretched him. He grabbed one of the bars on the head board to steady himself and started panting, his face burning red at this point.

Levi worked him open, starting with one finger, going up to three. He wished he could capture all the faces Eren was making, covered in sweat, his bangs a mess over his forehead and eyes.

Once he seemed ready, Levi coated his cock in the excess lube. He lined himself up and steadily slid into Eren, making his student lose all the air in his lungs, turning his head to the side, overwhelmed with the feeling of being filled. 

Levi didn't wait long before he started to pull out and push in again, starting a slow rhythm.

"Oh, fuck— oh my god," Eren moaned, raising his hips to meet with Levi's thrusts. "Oh god, harder Levi..."

Levi complied. His hands gripped Eren's leg tighter, he quickened in pace, using his free hand to stroke the other man. He couldn't get enough of how expressive Eren was during sex. 

Eren's hand on the bar tightened, his knuckles turning white. His other arm reached out, his fist curling into the sheets. It was difficult for him to keep himself from practically thrashing from all the pleasure he was swimming in. 

Levi could hear the bed springs creaking beneath them, but he was more concerned with all the sweet noises coming out of Eren's mouth. He'd wanted to see him like this since the first day of classes. And now that he had him a moaning mess in his bed, he knew it would be hard to hold back next time he saw him. He released his leg, bending down to kiss and bite at Eren's neck. He ran his hand through the other man's long locks, wishing he could take the elastic tie out so he could see what he'd look like with his hair free and uncontrolled. "I fucking love your hair," he said against Eren's throat, grabbing tighter, starting to pull. "It's so sexy..."

"Fuck," Eren gasped. He took his hand out of the sheets, grabbing onto Levi's shoulder, nearly breaking the skin with his nails. Levi started to speed up, the harder he went, the deeper Eren's nails dug in. He was losing his breath a million times over, caught between the desperate need to keep his eyes open to see his professor and keeping them closed to focus on everything he was feeling. "I'm gonna come... fuck, Levi..."

"Come on," Levi urged him, moving to connect their lips in an intense kiss, biting on Eren's bottom lip, making him gasp and granting him entrance for his tongue. He explored his mouth, running over wherever he could. He quickened his thrusts and his hand, still stroking Eren. 

Eren tensed up, now holding onto Levi for dear life with both hands, moaning into Levi's mouth. He couldn't keep it together any longer, he came between them, the other still keeping up his speed, but losing rhythm, and it wasn't long before he joined Eren. 

They rode out their orgasms together, breaking their kiss and panting heavily. Eren could argue that this was the best sex he'd ever gotten. He'd only ever slept with people around his own age who were either too drunk to be any good or more concerned with their own completion rather than the both of them getting off. But Levi had experience and took amazing care of him. Levi got up to throw out the condom, returning shortly and handing Eren tissues to clean up, which he did quickly, throwing them in the trash can under the bedside table. 

They both got under the covers, Eren slinging an arm over his forehead, still trying to catch his breath. "That was incredible..."

"You weren't too bad yourself." Levi faced him, keeping his personal space. "You know, if you wanna spend the night, I'm not gonna be opposed to that."

Eren groaned. "Wish I could... my roommate would get suspicious, she knows I'm over here." He was brought harshly back to reality, remembering that this was an extremely sensitive situation they were in, and things could get seriously fucked up if the wrong person found out about what they had just done.

"Understandable," Levi responded.

Eren looked over at his professor, studying his neutral expression. He closed their distance, resting his head on the other man's chest. "I wouldn't mind going again, though..."

Levi smirked down at him, running his hand down his spine. "I like that idea."

~

Eren must've drenched himself in the cheap body spray he got from the dollar store. He couldn't have Mikasa knowing what he just came back from. He just hoped that his hair always being messy was enough to throw her off the scent. 

He returned to his dorm, feeling like he was on top of the world. Mikasa, sitting on her bed, looked up from her laptop after hearing the door open. "Jesus, how long does it take for you to make paint?"

Eren shrugged. "I wasn't very good at it. Had to try a couple times."

"Did you at least have fun?"

Eren nodded, collapsing onto his bed, positively exhausted. "Yeah, I had fun. I learned a lot."

"That's good... god, what's that smell?"

"... My cologne," Eren said nervously.

"You're wearing way too much. Go easy on it next time."

Eren turned onto his side, facing the wall. He smiled into his blanket, still reeling after his time with Levi. He felt like he was getting away with something, which he was. But he also felt... wanted. Levi had asked if he wanted to continue this, and of course he said yes. He couldn't believe he made it with someone so attractive and talented and successful. Levi loved giving him attention in the classroom and in the bedroom and he was over the moon about it. 

"Ackerman didn't say anything inappropriate to you, did he?" Mikasa asked.

Eren sat up to look at her. "Nope," he lied. "I told you so, he was a perfect gentleman."

Mikasa raised a brow at him, confused by his wording. "He was a gentleman?"

"I only mean that he was polite."

"... Okay. And you felt comfortable being there by yourself?"

"Yes, I'm not a little kid, Mikasa." Eren frowned. 

"I'm just asking, you can never be too careful." Mikasa looked back at her laptop. "Some people are fucked up."

Eren wondered if he was fucked up for wanting to sleep with his professor who was more than likely twice his age. He wondered if it was even more fucked up that he went through with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if that sucked! I'm a little rusty.
> 
> If you liked this, it would mean a lot if you left a comment or kudos!
> 
> I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. Thanks for reading!


	5. Under Scrutiny

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick note, this chapter (or fic in general) is not commentary or judgement on age gap relationships. Some of the character's thoughts on the matter are not my own. Just had to put that out there.
> 
> Enjoy!

Eren panicked, he couldn't believe Mikasa hadn't noticed the hickeys that formed on his neck. Surely, if she had, she would've said something. He threw on the only turtle neck he owned, it would have to do for now.

He wondered if Levi would have as hard of a time keeping their relationship (if you could call it that) a secret.

~

Levi opened the door for his old friend. They'd agreed to have lunch together and catch up.

They stood outside the door beaming at him. "Levi!" The mirth drained from their face almost immediately. "Please tell me they're from somebody your own age."

Levi had forgotten about the marks Eren had left in his neck. "Well, it was nice seeing you, Hanji." He made a move to close the door but his friend slipped past anyway. He was hoping the topic of his choice in lovers wouldn't be brought up again, but it didn't look like he'd be afforded that luxury today. 

Hanji put their coat and scarf on the rack next to the door, shuffling out of their shoes. "So, what poor girl is it this time? A new student with a big rack? A new student with a big ass?"

Levi frowned, walking past them to get the coffee he had brewing. "It's not a girl."

Hanji pulled out a chair at his kitchen table, sitting down and shaking their head. "Oh yeah, I forget you're not straight."

Levi handed them their mug, sitting down with his own. 

"No food?"

"It's cooking in the oven."

"Ah... so, you're still not sick of robbing the cradle?" Hanji took a sip of their coffee.

Levi leaned his elbows on the table, rubbing his temples. "You know I hate it when you say that."

"Why because it makes you confront the fact that you're using these kids for sex?"

"They're not kids," Levi defended himself. "I've never fucked a student that wasn't 18 or older. You know I wouldn't—"

"That doesn't make it any better. They're your students for fuck's sake. Them being the age of consent does not make this okay. You could get fired. You could get—"

"I know—"

"Then what the fuck?" Hanji looked at Levi like he was crazy. "If you know that, then why risk it? Don't you want to find someone you can actually go places with? Someone you don't have to hide so you don't lose your career? I mean, Jesus, if you're only in it for the sex, there's no reason you can't go for people you don't teach, I guarantee you, there are people out there looking for the same thing."

Levi rolled his eyes. "I don't need to be lectured."

"I think you do. How many of your students does this make? Eight? Nine? You have a problem and you're going to get caught."

Levi crossed his arms, feeling like he was being scorned like a child. 

"I mean... when is it gonna end? When are you gonna be done?"

Levi shrugged. "If I can keep this going with the guy I'm with now, I don't see how we can't continue this after he graduates."

"And then what? Huh? Are you gonna get married? Is he gonna move in and you two get a dog? You can't honestly see this ending well. Do you really think you can keep up a relationship with some student?"

Levi had never considered actually dating any of his students. And quite frankly he didn't want to. 

"Don't you think he'll get sick of you? What happens if he wants to go back to dating people his own age? Do you honestly believe he won't want to eventually have a stable relationship with someone who makes more sense? Someone who he can be in a real relationship with and not just a taboo fuck for the thrill of it?"

"This one seems more into it than the others. Who knows, some people want an age gap relationship."

Hanji shook their head. "Levi, you gotta move past this. This kid is either gonna graduate and leave you far behind or find someone else, whichever comes first."

Levi hated that his friend was right. And it annoyed him. He did like Eren more than any previous partner he'd had. And he did agree that actually dating him was an unrealistic and bad idea. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

Hanji sighed, frustrated. "You're my friend and I love you, so I would never tell somebody what you're doing. But if you get caught, don't expect me to feel sympathy when you get fired. I will not be there to vouch for you."

Levi knew he should stop. He knew that this wasn't a sustainable habit. But he had no will to quit.

~

The timer for the model went off and everyone set down their pencils and erasers, taking a moment to stretch.

Eren cracked his neck, feeling stiff from being in the same position for so long. He yawned and twisted his torso.

"Wow, someone did a number on you, huh?" Annie said from his side.

"Huh?" Eren stretched his arm over his head, working out all the kinks.

Annie tapped at her neck. "Right here. Looks like you had fun."

Eren forgot. He couldn't wear his turtleneck everyday, so today he opted for his scarf, just so he could get past Mikasa. But it was so hot in the figure drawing room, the heaters were always on for the sake of the models. He didn't pay it much mind and pulled off his scarf mid-session. "Oh... um... yeah, I guess I did." He laughed nervously. He wasn't about to tell anyone who he was seeing and he wasn't embarrassed by people knowing he had sex, he just didn't like being put on the spot like that, and after Annie's comment, other students were looking. No one was immature enough to make fun of him, but some made faces as if to say 'oo, someone's lucky!'

Levi was eyeing them from his seat at his desk, smirking behind his hand. His collar was high enough that no bruises were on display today, but he liked seeing Eren squirm under inquiry.

"I don't mean to embarrass you," Annie went on. "But damn, whoever did that just fuckin' went to town."

"Yup..." Eren couldn't think of much else to say. 

Levi took pride in that remark. And he hoped this would become a routine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! If you did, please leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> I didn't edit, so I apologize for any errors. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. Thank you for reading!


	6. Suspicion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I felt like the last chapter was really short, and this one is too, so I just decided to upload this one to make up for them both being quick.
> 
> Enjoy!

Eren liked to intrude on some of Mikasa's classes, mainly the ones where the teacher wasn't intimidating and didn't mind the visit. Today he dropped by her computer applications class and luckily there was no lecture, so they were just working on their projects, chatting quietly. 

"Whatcha making?" Eren asked, swiveling in his rolling chair. 

"We gotta do a monochrome portrait," Mikasa said, too focused on her work to really pay him any mind. "You should switch to the other seat next to me, Jean sits there."

"Who's Je—"

"Hey, mutt. Get outta my chair."

Eren swiveled to see asked student with two-toned hair staring down at him impatiently. "Excuse me?"

"This your friend with the rats nest for hair?" Jean asked Mikasa.

"Exactly the one," she replied, clicking endlessly with her mouse.

"Hey, like your hair's any better," Eren spat back. "It looks like a hay bale."

"... Touché." Jean went to the other side of Mikasa.

"You don't want your seat back?"

"I respect when someone can make a fair argument." 

Eren laughed to himself. 

"So, are you coming with me on Saturday to stock up paint?" Mikasa asked. "I figure while we're out, we can go and catch a film, maybe get lunch. It's been awhile since we've hung out after the semester started."

Eren tapped on the desk. "Um... I can't. I've already made plans. What about Sunday?"

"Can't, the craft store I like is closed on Sunday. What are you doing Saturday?"

Eren didn't think that far ahead. Levi had invited him over again, and he wasn't about to turn him down. "I just... have something I already agreed to do. Don't wanna back out halfway through the week."

Mikasa finally broke her stare from the computer screen. "Okay, but what are you doing?"

"Um..." Eren made up the first plausible lie he could think of. "This girl in my figure drawing class is going to help me with a project in one of my classes. I'm a little lost with it and she said she'd help me."

Mikasa nodded in understanding. "That's nice of her. What's her name?"

"Annie," Eren answered quickly.

"Wait," Jean butted into the conversation. "Annie Leonhardt? Little blond girl? Looks miserable all the time?"

"... That's the one."

"She can't be helping you. She's the president of the photography club and we're going on a trip this weekend. She's required to go."

"O-Oh, um... I guess she forgot when we were making plans. I guess I'll check in with her on that."

"You should." Jean nodded. "Don't wanna run into a conflict."

"Right..."

~

"Can I ask you for a favor?" Eren stopped Annie in the hall after their figure drawing class ended.

"Is it another hair band? It'll cost you," she deadpanned.

"No, no. Um, you see... I just need you to say that you were going to help me with a class project this weekend if anyone asks."

Annie stared at him like he was crazy. "What?"

"I know it doesn't make any sense, but—"

"It's ludicrous, I'm going on a photography trip this weekend. I wouldn't skip out on that to help you, no offense."

"No, I get that, I just need you to say that you were going to but then you remembered you had the trip... can you do that?"

Annie frowned at him. "What- why would that come up?"

"It probably won't but I kinda told someone that you said you were helping me with a project because I couldn't go to something they invited me to and I didn't want to hurt their feelings." 

Annie's face soften and she nodded. "Oh, gotcha. I get that, I'll cover for you."

Eren sighed in relief. "Thank you so much!"

"Don't mention it. I've been there, making excuses to not go places. A word of advice though, next time just be honest, it'll save you the hassle." With that, she left to attend her next class.

Eren didn't like lying to people. Especially Mikasa. And though he wasn't exactly lying to Annie, he wasn't telling her the full truth and it felt weird. But if this was what he had to do to save his own ass and keep Levi out of trouble, this is what he'd resort to.

"Already making things up to cover for us?"

Eren turned to see Levi just coming out of the classroom. "Yeah, I had to."

Levi crossed his arms, leaning against the wall right beside the door. "If it makes things easier on you, you can still just tell people I'm giving you lessons on the paint. We can continue actually doing that too if you'd like."

Eren smiled appreciatively. "I'd like to do that. But the thing is, my roommate was suspicious the first time I went over to your house. Another time, two weeks in a row, and she would've gotten nosy. I had to make up something, plus she invited me somewhere and well... you and I already had plans."

Levi nodded. "Fair enough. Well, if it's ever convenient, you can use our lessons as an excuse. I'll play along, of course." He flicked Eren's ear, making his student flinch. "Keep your hair out of your eyes, your perspective could use some work." 

Eren chuckled, watching his professor retreat back into his room.

~

Mikasa started inviting friends over, Jean became a frequent visitor to their dorm room. Eren didn't mind the extra company much, in fact, he really liked a lot of Mikasa's friends. Friday night, Jean was staying over and they were all just eating dinner, sitting on the floor. 

"Wait, you have a class with professor Ackerman?" Jean asked, his mouth full of food, putting off the other two.

Eren nodded. "Yeah, figure drawing."

"Aw man, that's brutal. I had him for that class and he was such a dick. If you ever need to drop, I can recommend some other teachers for when you retake it."

"Eren's actually doing amazing, one of the best in his class," Mikasa interjected. "Gets his stuff on the wall almost every week. Doesn't have a tough time or anything from what I've heard."

"Really?" Jean gawked at her. "That's insane, it was like he had a personal vendetta against most of my class when I had him. One time, I'd finished my sketch for the day and he looked at it and said 'did you have fun making it?' And I was like 'yeah, I guess,' and he said 'that's good, cuz it sucks.' He's so fucking harsh."

"Wow, he's never like that in my class," Eren said. At least, Levi was never like that with him. He didn't often observe how he treated his classmates. He was always too focused on his own work and getting Levi's attention that words shared to others were the least of his concerns.

Jean shook his head. "I don't know man. Maybe just give it time. Maybe he got a raise, but he'll get out of his perky mood or whatever. Be prepared."

The three laughed, but Eren couldn't ever see Levi being rudely critical of his or anyone else's work. He'd seen too much of his good side to believe that he'd be so cruel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked the chapter, if you did, please leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. Thanks for reading!


	7. Closer and Closer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting this a tad later than I had planned. 
> 
> I should point out, I mentioned this in a comment, but not the notes, it doesn't have to get to this point in the fic, if you have a professor that treats you like Levi treats Eren in the first couple chapters, and if you don't reciprocate those feelings, report that shit. This behavior is not okay if you don't return it. College professors can't get arrested for it, because all parties involved are adults, but they can get fired. Some institutes allow teachers to have relationships with their students, some only allow it if it's not their own student, some only allow it if the teacher tells their supervisor, and some don't allow it at all. Be careful out there.
> 
> Yee

Eren had been going to see Levi for a few weeks now. They'd stopped with the painting lessons since the second week and Eren no longer felt awkward when entering. At this point, Levi left the door unlocked for him and he'd walk in, knowing the layout of the house, feeling entirely comfortable in this environment. 

Eren took off his shoes and found Levi in his kitchen. "Hey," he said, flashing him a grin.

Levi smirked at him while looking through the cupboards. "Right on time. Do you want something to drink?"

"Sure."

Levi pulled out two glasses. "How about wine?"

Eren shook his head, waving him off. "Uh- sorry, I can't. I'm not of age."

Levi gave him a questioning look. "...Yeah?"

Eren realized that wasn't the worst thing he was doing in this situation. "Oh, um- yeah, I'll take some."

Levi nodded, bringing out a bottle of red wine and pouring them both a glass. "You have drank before, right? This isn't the first time you've had alcohol?"

"Yeah, I mean... I've never had a nice wine or anything like that before. But I've had cheap beer and... rum and coke, stuff like that."

Levi walked over, handing Eren his glass. "Well, I can guarantee you..." he led him out to the living room couch. "That this is much nicer than what you've had. I don't know about you, but I drink for the taste, not getting drunk. But I guess wine is good for both of those."

Eren laughed, taking a seat with his teacher and taking a sip. "I don't really drink to get drunk. I usually just have whatever my friends offer me."

Levi snorted. "You've got pretty shit friends if that's all they give you."

Eren laughed again. "No, they just have bad taste, but they're good friends." He took another drink, agreeing with the other that this was so much better than anything he was used to. 

It was getting dark outside. Eren didn't want to keep asking to borrow Mikasa's car, and on some occasions she just couldn't lend it out. So, since Levi's house was just down the road, he'd walk there and end up going later in the evening. 

"You know, it's been awhile since you've worn your hair down in my class..." Levi noted, taking another sip of wine.

Eren fixed him with a look. "Oh? I thought you wanted me to wear it up."

Levi shrugged. "Well, you really should. You have to see of course, and you're very attractive... but I do also like how it looks when it's down."

"You should really make up your mind. I only had it down that one time because I forgot about it." Eren had it tied up today, his bangs pinned up and out of the way, since Levi always went on about keeping it clear. And also because he liked it when Levi praised him, saying how handsome he looked.

"It's hard to make up my mind when you can pull it off however you wear it. Like now, I can see your beautiful eyes... I can appreciate your features this way."

Eren felt himself turning red.

"And I can see it when you blush and it drives me crazy."

Eren looked down bashfully at his lap. No one ever complimented him like this.

Levi smiled, he liked that he could get under his student's skin so easily. He set down his glass, sitting closer to him. "But... I also like it when it's down, because all I can think about is running my hands through it, and tugging a bit. Reminds me how bad I want to get you in bed... do you like it? When I pull your hair?" Levi reached to place a small strand of hair that had freed itself from the bobby pins behind Eren's ear. 

Eren nodded, his heart rate picking up. "I like it..." He held on tighter to his glass.

Levi set his hand on Eren's knee. "Yeah? What else do you like?"

"... I like it when you touch me."

"Mn, touch you where?"

Eren answered honestly. "Anywhere."

~

Levi ran his hands up Eren's thighs, gripping hard on his hips while the younger man rode him on his couch. His nails dug into the skin, leaving crescent shaped indents. As much as he loved fucking his student into the mattress, he enjoyed watching him from below, taking in his cock hard and fast. 

Eren grabbed ahold of the back of the couch to gain more leverage as Levi slid in and out of him. He could feel Levi start to buck up, hitting his prostate with each thrust. "Oh my god," he gasped.

"Did I hit your sweet spot?" Levi asked, knowing exactly what he was doing. 

Eren, unable to articulate anything comprehensive, nodded, shutting his eyes.

"Keep your eyes open," Levi demanded. Eren obeyed. "Wanna see how pretty they look when you come."

Eren shuttered, he couldn't get enough of the way his professor spoke to him when they were like this. 

"Fuck, you're so tight," Levi breathed. "Feels so good... you're always so good for me, so fucking hot..." He could feel Eren getting tighter around him, could feel him losing rhythm. "You gonna come?"

"Yeah-fuck—" Eren couldn't get much else other than that out. He used his free hand to start stroking himself, sensing that he wasn't going to last much longer. He came onto Levi's stomach, Levi following close after. He nearly collapsed if he hadn't used his arm to steady himself.

"Easy now, don't fall," Levi joked. 

Eren sat up and Levi took off the condom, tying it up and tossing it to the side, uncaring of where it landed. He took a couple tissues from off the coffee table to clean off his stomach, disposing of them and guiding Eren to lay down with him.

Levi kept an arm around him. Eren rested on his teacher's chest, a hand on his shoulder while he tried to catch his breath. He liked that after the first few times, Levi started to cuddle with him. 

"You're killing me, kid," Levi mumbled.

Eren looked up at him. "Huh?"

"I'm not as young as I used to be, you're fucking the breath right outta me."

Eren giggled. "You're not old though."

"I'm thirty-eight."

"That's not old. If it makes you feel any better, I can't barely breathe right now."

"You're right... that does make me feel better."

Eren chuckled and that noise made Levi grin to himself. 

~

Mikasa let Jean in her dorm, he was supposed to be helping her study, but she had the feeling they would just forgo that plan and have a film marathon.

"Where did you say Eren went?" Jean asked, dropping his book bag onto the floor.

"He said he was going to a friend's house. Didn't say which friend though." Mikasa jumped onto her bed, opening up her text book. "He's never here anymore. I was really excited to just hang out with him in our free time when he started college but now... I guess he's just making more friends, so I should be happy for him."

"You should invite him to hang out with us sometime, he's pretty cool, I wouldn't mind hanging with him."

Mikasa sighed. "Yeah... I don't know. I just miss my best friend."

Jean took a seat beside her. "I get that. Maybe you're right, maybe he just needs more friends. In that case, you should invite his new friends when you guys hang out, so everybody wins."

"That might work..."

"And I can come along too, because you and I already hang out and, you know..."

Mikasa smirked at him. "You already suggested that, but yeah, that's doable."

Jean shrugged. "Yeah, but... I'm just saying."

"I think you wanna say something else," Mikasa laughed.

"Like what? I'm just saying we could hang out."

"Yeah? Hang out and what?"

"Fuck you," Jean spat "just hanging out."

"Oo, why so defensive?" Mikasa teased. 

Jean frowned. "Listen, you're just assuming—"

"Am I assuming correctly?"

"... Yes," Jean muttered bitterly. 

"You don't have to be so pissy about it. I don't mind. I can talk you up to Eren if you want me too, plant the seed if you will. He's single, so who knows what might happen?"

Jean huffed, bothered that now Mikasa knew, but soon gave up on being moody, seeing no point in it. "Do you think he'd be interested in me?"

"Well, I'm not sure." Mikasa started flipping through her text book, looking for the right chapter. "He won't admit it, but he's been lonely and hasn't had a real date in awhile. So, do I think you're a great guy who could easily find a date? Yes. Do I know if Eren would be into you? I don't know. I'm not sure what his type is."

Jean kept his hopes up. Perhaps Eren would be interested.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooo the plot thickens
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you did please leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. Thanks for reading!!!


	8. Dirt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> High key hate this chapter. It's a no for me

Annie took one look at Eren on his way in and started shaking her head. "Oh, uh-uh, absolutely not. If you start huffing and puffing, I'm gonna knock your ass down."

Eren snorted out a laugh, combing through his hair with his fingers. "I'm not gonna keep messing with it, I'm just gonna let it do its thing." He'd left it all down today, on account of Levi's comment the last time he'd slept with him.

"I swear to god, if I hear one noise from you, I'm stabbing you with my pencil."

"You won't hear a thing from me."

"I'll hold you to that."

Class started as per usual, and as usual, it was silent enough to hear a pin drop. Levi came around, offering advice and checking on progress. He stopped beside Eren, resting a hand on the small of his back, making his student shiver. Since Eren stood at a spot in the room where no one was positioned behind him, Levi could get away with more risky hand placements.

"Can you see?" Levi teased quietly.

"I can see well enough," Eren said, pausing to push back his bangs.

"Hmph," Levi let out an amused breath. "Then try paying more attention to her hips." He lowered his hand to the swell of Eren's ass. "They're a little more tilted than the way you have them on your paper."

The bold move was driving Eren crazy. "Alright, I'll work on that."

"Other than that, good work today." Levi gave one finally squeeze before releasing and walking over to Annie's easel.

Eren was glad his bangs fell again to cover his reddening cheeks.

A few poses were finished and they reached the halfway mark of the class. Levi clapped his hands together, pacing in front of the model. "Okay, everyone. Ten minute break. Take some time to stretch."

Eren raised his arms over his head, feeling his joints pop. He rolled his neck, cracking it, earning some disgusted looks from his classmates. 

"Hey," Annie called for him from her seat. "You wanna see something funny?"

Eren nodded. "Sure."

"It's Ackerman's 'Rate My Professor' review. The top one is gold," she whispered, handing him her phone.

Eren was actually eager to see it. He never checked those websites, and though he was sleeping with his professor, he could use a laugh at students being bitter that he failed them. He took her phone and read the first review.

'Garbage grading method, would not recommend. You will not do well in this class unless you're a prodigy or have big tits. Unless you're swine like him.' This review showed the person's grade, which was an 'A.'

Eren stared blankly and felt his stomach turn. He read the next one down, even though Annie didn't suggest that one.

'Don't say yes if he asks you if you want to learn how to make paint.' Another 'A' for a grade.

Eren felt like he was going to be sick.

"Did you read it?" Annie asked, interrupting his train of thought. 

Eren blinked up at her then forced out a curt laugh. "That's funny," he said, handing back her phone. He didn't know why he was so affected by this. In the back of his mind he knew that Levi probably had seen other students in a similar fashion, and it didn't bother him, he didn't care about being the only one Levi had interest in. This made him confront a different feeling that he couldn't place a name to and didn't know how to handle. Just then he felt a buzzing in his pocket.

He took out his phone and saw a message from Levi. He looked up to find his teacher glancing at him and quickly averting his gaze back to his computer. 

He read the text. 'You should come to my place tonight if you're free.' Another one came in soon after. 'I love your hair like that.'

For some reason, after reading the texts, his mood lightened a bit. He couldn't comprehend the feeling he just had, but now he was more distracted by Levi and the invitation.

He typed back.

'I'll be there.'

~

Eren kneeled on the ground in front of the sofa, one hand on his professor's thigh, the other stroking whatever was left of Levi's cock that he couldn't fit in his mouth. Levi had a hand in Eren's hair, gripping for dear life. His student didn't mind how tight his hold was, he was just glad he enjoyed it. Levi had been getting rougher with him lately, but the younger of the two may have liked it more than he did. 

Eren looked up at his teacher, who's eyes were scrunched up, struggling to keep composure. It made him happy to know he had this effect on him, that someone could be so taken apart by him. He could feel Levi trying not to buck his hips up, signaling that he was nearing his finish. 

Levi put a stop to it, grabbing Eren's chin and pulling him off, loving how red his face was and how out of breath he appeared. "Get up."

Sitting beside Levi on the couch, Eren was soon pushed into the cushions. They'd been at it all evening, Levi didn't even bother preparing him again.

Levi positioned himself between Eren's legs, grabbing a condom from off the coffee table and rolling it on. "Tell me what you want."

Eren was positively wrecked, having already done so much that night with Levi still wanting more and pushing him to his limits. "I want you inside me," he rasped, throat hurting from taking Levi so deep in his throat and from all the sounds he'd been letting out all night. 

"Is that all?"

"I want you to fuck me hard."

Levi pushed in slowly, but it wasn't long before he was giving Eren what he wanted, practically ramming into him. He grabbed onto Eren's hips painfully tight, soon to leave bruised hand prints no doubt. While Levi had almost always given it to him roughly, he'd gotten rather aggressive as of recent, and it was very welcomed. 

Eren started moaning uncontrollably, his chest stuttering with each breath. 

Levi leaned in closer, biting at Eren's ear. "Do you like it when I fuck you so hard you can't even talk right?" His voice was going out too, but he'd use what he had left to toy with the younger man.

Eren nodded frantically. "Fuck-yes!" 

"You're so filthy like this... you want more?"

Eren nodded again.

Pulling out, Levi brought Eren into his arms to flip him onto his stomach, going back in, just as fast to take him from behind. He bent over to bite hard into the nape of Eren's neck, making him gasp audibly, letting out a low moan. Levi brought a hand down, leaving a hard smack on his student's ass, which was appreciated by the other. 

"More," Eren begged. 

Levi spanked him again. And again. "So good," he moaned between bites on Eren's skin. "Such a whore." Ever since he learned his student liked it when he talked dirty, he would reserve that for when he wanted him to completely fall apart. "You're such a slut for my cock, aren't you, beautiful?"

"God, yes..."

"Say it," Levi demanded.

"I'm a slut– fuck!" Eren could feel his climax approaching.

"That's it, come for me."

They both lost the rhythm they'd built up, coming at the same time. Eren's eyes rolled into the back of his head. Levi collapsed onto Eren's back, completely wiped out, not like Eren was any better off. 

After a few minutes, Levi pulled out, taking off his condom and finding a tissue to clean up where Eren had come on the couch, then laying beside him, trying to regain his breath. "No more for tonight."

Eren chuckled, cuddling up to Levi. "I don't think I have it in me for another round."

"Good, neither do I." Levi stroked the younger man's arm. "Did I get too rough this time?"

"No, it was perfect."

"Just making sure, don't wanna take it too far and keep you from going back to class."

Eren laughed. "I wouldn't dream of missing your class."

"That's what I like to hear." Levi gave him a kiss on the forehead.

~

"So, when are you gonna tell him he means nothing to you?" Hanji asked, arms crossed, leaning up against the wall of Levi's office.

"He does not mean nothing to me. That's too harsh. I just don't want a relationship with him." Levi was trying to enter grades into the computer when Hanji came to visit. They had just come in as Eren was leaving and from the facial expressions the guy had on, they took a wild guess and figured that was Levi's new fixation for the year.

"Okay, when you gonna tell him that?"

"When I'm done fucking him," Levi muttered, trying to get his work done. "Besides, he knows this isn't going to become anything. He knows it's strictly physical and won't last." 

"The last one didn't. You broke her heart."

"If she was a grown woman fucking her college professor for two years with no talk of advancement, no progression whatsoever and expected something more from it, then that's her own delusion."

Hanji shook their head. "You don't even care what you're doing to these kids."

"They're not kids," Levi reminded them sternly, jabbing the letters on his keyboard. "I'm not doing anything to them, if they're under the impression that we're gonna fall in love or some stupid shit, that's on them. They sleep around with each other all the time with no strings attached, it shouldn't make a difference when the other person is older."

"Levi, I saw the look on that guy's face when he left here. He's smitten. You gotta cauterize this before it turns into a big mess." Hanji contemplated why they were still friends with someone so cold. Someone so reckless.

"I think I can handle this."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof
> 
> If you liked this please leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	9. Headache

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't realize how long it had been since I updated last, oops
> 
> College is kicking my ass, forgive me

"You gotta cut your hair," Mikasa said, watching Eren draw in his sketchbook. "It's getting way out of hand."

"Can you stop? I get it. It's long. It gets in the way. But I like it, alright?"

Mikasa shrugged. "Sorry, I just figure it'd be easier for you."

Eren huffed in agitation, shading his sketch in aggressively. "Well, I don't care."

Eren was feeling incredibly irritable lately. After he found out that he was not the first student Levi had slept with, he'd been feeling off. He tried to figure out why that fact made him so upset, he wasn't jealous, he wasn't offended, and he definitely didn't feel expendable. So, why was he so bothered? This feeling that settled in wasn't jealousy. It wasn't offense. It was shame. This was the problem. The problem lied with the fact that he should've felt envy or disgust or any hurt towards Levi at all, but he was upset with himself. This was the issue, he learned that he didn't have enough respect for himself to confront what Levi was doing, to report him. He may have been willing to sleep with him, but that didn't necessarily go for the other students Levi had been with or would continue to pursue after him. He also had no way of finding out.

Eren stopped drawing, exhausted. "Are you busy Friday?"

"Yeah, I've gotta get some work done on my car, it's making weird noises."

"... What about next Monday?"

"Studying for a test."

"... Oh."

Mikasa sensed a hurt tone in his voice and looked over to find him crestfallen. "Eren, you okay?"

Eren shrugged. He'd been too harsh with his friend and the more he thought about it, he realized they hadn't spent any real time together since before the semester started. "I just miss you is all. I wanna hang out with my friends."

Mikasa went to sit by him, throwing an arm over his shoulders. "I'm sorry I'm busy. Maybe later next week. Until then, you can hang out with your other friends, right?"

Eren began to nod. Then he realized she meant the friends he made up whenever he needed an excuse for when he went to Levi's house. And then it hit him that it was almost halfway through the semester and he hadn't made a single new friend. Even Annie was just someone he talked with, he wouldn't consider her a friend, or even an acquaintance. He tried thinking back, did he really make no friends? What was he spending his time doing? "Yeah, I guess I'll do that."

Mikasa brought him into a side hug. "Aw, don't make that face. After things quiet down for a bit, we'll do something fun, I swear."

Eren leaned into her embrace. He was entirely wiped out emotionally. "Promise?"

"I prom– what is that on your neck?"

Eren stilled. Mikasa had seen the hickey on the back of his neck. He played dumb, panicked and unprepared. "What's what?"

"That nasty bruise," Mikasa murmured, inspecting it closer. 

"Oh," Eren said, pulling away. "Yeah, that was an accident."

"What happened? Are you okay?"

Eren made up the first thing he could think of, not caring if it sounded remotely believable or not. "Um, yeah... um, a... an easel fell on me. In class... someone was putting it away and dropped it and it... hit me."

"Oh my god, that happened to you too?" Mikasa gawked at him.

Eren frowned in confusion for a split second before reverting back to a neutral expression. "Yeah, did you... get hit by an easel?"

Mikasa nodded. "They're just so tall and awkward to carry. This small girl dropped one on me. Isn't it the worst?"

"Oh-yeah, for sure. It sucked."

~

Eren felt a hand on his bicep while he was sketching the model. He let out a shaky breath. He knew that he shouldn't have been so weak to this inappropriate behavior, that he shouldn't have been allowing this level of unprofessionalism and presumptuous advancements from a professor. But he craved that hand so badly. He should've been shewing away a man literally twice his age that held no feelings except lust towards him. 

"Good work today. If you have time, add in some of the background," Levi advised. "Add some dark values. Make the figures really pop off the page."

Eren nodded. "Okay."

Levi gave one last squeeze to his arm, circling around back to his desk, and it drove Eren crazy. He couldn't help that he loved every little touch so much. He should've told someone about this. Teachers weren't allowed to do this. He should've told Levi to stop, but he didn't want him to. 'I'm so pathetic,' he thought to himself. 

The timer sounded, Eren took a seat to give his feet a rest. He didn't even spare Levi a glance, he shouldn't have been giving him the satisfaction. He was making it so easy for someone in a secure position to take advantage of him. He wasn't just making it easy for him, he was letting him with no resistance and incredible enthusiasm. He felt so embarrassed. He wouldn't know what to do if anyone found out, didn't want to ponder over what anyone else would think of him. He worried they'd think he was a whore. That he was doing it for grades. Which made him wonder further, would his grades in this class be so good if he wasn't sleeping with the professor? Would Levi praise his art so much if he didn't find him attractive? His stomach started to turn. 

Eren pulled his phone out of his pocket, feeling it vibrate. Another text from Levi.

'Can't wait to fuck you, you free tonight?'

Eren's heart skipped a beat and he knew it should not be doing that. He should've felt insulted, but instead he felt like he was on cloud nine. He loved that someone said that to him, that someone wanted him that bad. Sure, he'd had boyfriends before, he'd had sex before, people had flirted with him in the past. But Levi was so forward and unapologetic about all of it. And it felt like heaven for Eren.

'Always free for you,' he responded. 

He had to stop, he thought to himself, he didn't have boundaries with Levi, not even small ones. Levi had all the control of their arrangement and it took him this long to figure it out. Levi had gotten him to do everything he wanted until this point and it only fazed Eren just now. Eren hated himself for it. He didn't even need to be persuaded. He just gave him whatever he asked for. He would go out of his way to keep that attention and maintain Levi's control on him by wearing his hair how Levi liked it, doing something different to make him look longer, draw slower to give Levi the incentive to check on his work. This whole time he'd been handing himself over. But the reward was far to good to stop now.

~

When Mikasa had told Eren that she needed to study Monday night, she left out the fact that she would be leaving to study with friends who were in the class with her, leaving him all alone in their dorm.

Eren stared at the ceiling, feeling isolated and lonely. He'd distanced himself from everyone without realizing it. Just when be was about to call Mikasa, asking her how long she'd be, he heard his phone go off. Levi was messaging him, and he knew that he'd already dug himself in a hole with Levi, but his attention always brightened his mood.

'What are you doing right now?'

Eren texted back hastily. 'Nothing, you?'

'Missing you.'

Eren laid on his back, holding his phone to his chest. Levi missed him. Even if he was only missing him for sex or other selfish wants, he was thinking about him. 

'Where are you?' Levi texted again.

'My dorm.'

'Are you alone?'

'Yes.'

'Send me a picture of you, I miss looking at you.'

Eren's heart fluttered. Sitting up, he removed his shirt. Before taking a picture, he got up to lock the door, that way if Mikasa came back, he'd hear the lock and would have enough of a warning to get decent. He settled back into bed, holding his phone above him, feeling his pulse quicken. He'd never done this before. He'd never taken a risky photo of himself and he'd certainly never sent one, not even to a former boyfriend. But if Levi wanted one, he was happy to give him one. 

He angled himself so that Levi could see most of his torso, and his face had just made it into the shot. He didn't know what kind of expression to make, so he settled for a subtle, lazy smile. He sent it, becoming more nervous by the second. 

'You have the most amazing body,' Levi sent. 'You're beautiful.' He sent soon after.

Eren felt a little braver. 'Can I have a picture too?' He waited anxiously, scared that Levi was only interested in receiving photos. 

He was proved wrong. Levi sent a photo of a shot aimed at his abdomen, revealing his hand going into his boxers. It was followed up by another text. 'Too late to invite you over, maybe I can get a lower view to hold me off until tomorrow?'

Eren wouldn't normally comply so easily, but Levi made him feel so wanted. He'd give him what it would take to keep him interested.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof
> 
> I have had a easel dropped on me three times. Twice by the same person.
> 
> I hope you liked this chapter! If you did, please leave a comment or kudos!!!
> 
> My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. I don't edit, so sorry for any errors.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	10. Fragile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof, sorry for the delay. College is wild
> 
> Enjoy!

Eren was in way too deep. He wanted to stop what he had with Levi because he knew it wasn't good for him, he knew that this arrangement was just filling a void. But he didn't want to stop because of how Levi made him feel, this was the best distraction he could ask for. It had gotten to the point where they would openly sext each other in the middle of class. During breaks, Eren would sit up against the wall, away from the other students so they couldn't look over his shoulder at his phone screen. Today, Levi was texting him, asking for him to paint a picture of what he did when he was alone.

'How do you take care of yourself when I'm not there?' Levi messaged him.

Eren looked up and around him nervously. He dug through his photos, trying to find a few that he had taken and saved for these kinds of conversations. He chose one of him fingering himself, his cock erect and on display in the picture. He felt a little sick just having the photo on his phone, let alone sending it to someone, but the reaction he got was worth it to him. 

He saw Levi receive the text, widen his eyes for half a second before regaining composure, aware of where he was. He pocketed his phone and left. "I'll be right back," he announced. "You guys know what to do."

The text Eren got in response was 'You have no idea what you do to me.' If Levi was ever in his presence, flirting, touching him, whatever it may have been, Eren was so lost in it that he didn't have time to ponder his morals or self respect. He only could analyze the situation once his professor was removed from it. 

Eren hated himself for what he allowed Levi to do. He recalled how the man treated him like a sexual goal, like a potential partner from day one instead of his student. He wouldn't accept it if someone treated Mikasa like that. He wouldn't accept anyone treating anyone else like that. Eren figured it out. He was so starved of attention and starved of touch, that this felt like a solution to his problem. No one else his age (or anyone in general) was showing him this kind of affection, so he'd welcome this behavior as long as it came to him. He wondered if he would be acting the same way if it wasn't Levi, but another person doing this to him. And it scared him when he came to the conclusion that he most likely would act the same way, it just happened to be Levi taking advantage of his vulnerability.

~

Eren was like a walking corpse lately. He stayed up so late every night, mortified over his actions, he became more and more exhausted by the day. He dropped into Mikasa's class, too lonely to stay in his dorm and desperate for companionship. He found her next to Jean where they usually sat, and took the other seat beside her.

Class was almost over, so that meant they'd walk out together, hopefully find something to do if Mikasa wasn't busy.

"You look terrible," Mikasa noted, looking at the bags under Eren's eyes. 

"Thanks," Eren grumbled.

"I didn't mean it like that," Mikasa corrected herself. "Are you okay? Have you been getting any sleep at all?"

Eren shrugged. "... Classes are hard. I got work to do."

"I don't think you look bad," Jean said, leaning long enough to see Eren, then sitting back in his seat.

Eren raised a brow at him. Mikasa only stifled a laugh. "Um... thank you."

The clock ticked, the teacher dismissed everyone, and then it was time for Jean and Mikasa to pack up their things, logging off the computers. "Maybe you should spend your free time like right now working on class work instead of waiting until late at night then," Mikasa suggested. 

Eren followed them out of the room and down the hall. "It's fine, I'm surviving."

Mikasa gave him a look. She was about to say something, but Jean nudged her arm and she got the message he was trying to send and sent him and encouraging smile, falling back a few paces behind him and Eren.

Jean walked by the other man's side, clearing his throat. "So, Eren... do you, um, do you have any plans for this Friday night?"

Eren shrugged. "It depends on the time. I'm free before seven, after I'm done with my class."

Jean nodded. "Cool. So... I was wondering, if you're not busy, if you would maybe want to do something together?"

Eren perked up at this. He needed human interaction desperately. "Yeah? Like what?"

Jean hoped this was a good sign, seeing as the other appeared enthusiastic. "Well, anything really. I was hoping, if you would also want to, to go on a date?"

Eren stopped in his tracks, Mikasa almost bumping into him, not expecting him to halt so suddenly. "Huh?"

Jean stopped with him. "Do you want to go out with me?" He asked in a hopeful tone.

Eren's cheeks went beet red. He hadn't anticipated this from Jean. And he might've said yes. If it wasn't for his predicament. "Wow... I mean... I'm flattered." He didn't know what the hell he could even call his situation. Actually, he did. He was his professor's fuck buddy. Would Levi be upset with him if he went out on a date with someone else? Were they even exclusive? Eren had no idea. Sure, he wasn't the only student of Levi's that he'd been sleeping with, but as far as he knew, he didn't think Levi was sleeping with someone else for the time being. This was hard to navigate. He didn't want to go against the only person so unashamedly enthralled with him. He didn't want to risk what he had secured for something that might not work out, though it was infinitely more sensible. "That's... that's really sweet of you Jean." The other gave him a smile that killed him to look at. He felt so guilty. He was going to hurt someone with pure intentions to maintain a relationship with an older man who showed no signs of wanting anything more out of him than sex. "That's sweet, but... I'm so sorry, I'm going to have to say no."

Jean tried not to let his face fall.

"It's not you or anything," Eren was quick to add. "I'm just... the situation I'm in right now is really complicated. I'm not sure entirely what's going on myself, it wouldn't be fair to you to say yes if I later found out that things are... something other than what I know them to be now. I'm sorry, I know it doesn't make any sense... but things really are complicated right now..."

Jean nodded. "I understand. Don't worry about it." He deflated out of disappointment, but he wasn't upset with Eren. 

"I really am sorry."

"Don't be! It's all good. I hope whatever's going on sorts itself out for you," Jean said, starting to shuffle away. "I gotta go to my next class, but maybe we can still just hang out, yeah?"

Eren nodded, feeling like an asshole. "Yeah, definitely." He watched Jean walk off, furious with himself.

Mikasa stepped up to him, looking perplexed. "Eren? What was that?"

Eren looked down at his feet. "I know you were probably hoping I'd tell him yes because he's your friend—"

"No, no, I don't care if you said yes or no, it's your life. But, are you... seeing someone? What going on that's complicated?"

Eren avoided her stare, he hated lying to her all the time and didn't want to do it again, but he certainly couldn't tell her the truth.

"Did you lie to him so you wouldn't have to turn him down and feel bad?"

"No! God, no, I'm not an asshole," Eren defended himself. 

"Then, are you seeing someone?"

Eren shook his head, turning to walk away. "I'm not going to talk about this."

Mikasa kept up with him. "You can tell me, I'm your best friend, it's not like I'll shout it out to the world. I didn't know that you were with someone, is that what's going on?"

"I can't talk about it," Eren said, trying not to sound as agitated as he felt. 

"Why not? It's not like I'll get mad at you for finding a guy. I don't care if you're sleeping around casually, if you're interested in someone but not sure if he likes you back. Whatever it is, I can promise you it's not a big deal to me."

"Mikasa, drop it," Eren snapped.

Mikasa gawked at him, stunned that he took that turn in attitude so quickly. "... Fine."

Eren shut his eyes for a brief moment. Exhaling sharply. "I'm sorry, I'm just irritable because I haven't been sleeping, and I'm up to my neck with assignments, and I can't tell you what's going on, but it's a lot and... I'm tired."

Mikasa grabbed his hand, walking with him. "It's okay. I'm sorry for prying. I get that you're under a lot of stress."

On the way down the hall, Levi was walking the opposite direction and nodded curtly at Eren. "Hey, eren."

Eren waved, his heart skipping a beat, knees going weak. "Hey, Ackerman." After Levi walked briskly past him and was far behind, he could feel his eyes watering. 

"Are you okay?" Mikasa asked.

"I'm going back to the dorm." Eren left her grip and hurried out of the building.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Didn't care too much for this chapter.
> 
> Even so, I hope you guys like it. If you did, please leave a comment or kudos! 
> 
> My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. Thanks for reading! <3


	11. Careful

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so busy and sad and I kinda can't believe I'm still breathing lmao 
> 
> Anyways, sorry for the big wait, here's the next chapter!
> 
> Enjoy!

Eren waited at the coffee shop down the street from the college. He hadn't started drinking his beverage yet, and it was starting to get cold. Checking his phone for what felt like the millionth time, he felt another wave of disappointment finding no notifications. Mikasa promised she'd meet him.

He wiped his face with his hands, exhausted and trying not to get emotional in public. His friend was an hour and a half late. 

Looking out the window, he could see that it was going to rain soon. The sky was overcast, which did absolutely nothing to help his mood. It was getting colder and Eren didn't have much of an incentive to leave his dorm anymore.

His phone buzzed on the table and he answered immediately. "Hello?"

"Eren, I'm so sorry," Mikasa said over the phone. "My phone died, it's just at enough battery to call you."

"It's fine," Eren said, despite the fact he was still upset. "You're okay, right?"

"Yeah, I just got caught up at the library. I have so much more work to do than I realized. I can't make it today, I've just got so much to finish."

Eren swallowed his feelings. "I understand." He couldn't be angry with Mikasa, her absence wasn't her fault, but it still hurt that she canceled with him for the umpteenth time. 

"I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologize, I get it. You gotta get your work done."

Mikasa sighed. "I'll make it up to you."

Eren didn't know if he could hold her to that. "Okay. Good luck on your homework."

"Thanks, I'll need it."

They hung up. Eren closed his eyes, taking a deep breath while setting his phone back down. He was so tired of not having any meaningful interactions with anyone anymore, and he couldn't even confront anyone, because it was always out of obligations or mistakes, they weren't intentionally neglecting him. He could've screamed if he wasn't in the middle of a coffee shop.

"Eren?"

The man in question looked up to find his professor a few feet away, approaching him. "Hey, Ackerman." He straightened up.

Levi smirked. "We're not in class, there's no need to call me that."

"Right..."

Levi took notice of how tired he looked, how he was sitting alone. "You alright?"

Eren nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"... Well, if you aren't busy tonight, would you like to go to my place for the evening?"

Eren shuttered. He knew he couldn't just retreat to Levi when he was lonely, when he was in pain. But the alternative was another night alone. "Of course."

~

Tonight was agonizing for Eren in multiple ways. He was conscious of the fact that he was using Levi's fondness of him to ignore his real problems, which defeated the purpose of spending the night with him. But he couldn't help it. Levi was going so slow this time, which was such a change in pace that it caught Eren off guard. Usually, the fucking was so rough and relentless that he didn't have time to consider the moral ambiguity of it all. But this time around, Levi took his time, taking him from behind, being thorough. It was almost sweet. And Eren didn't know how to feel about it.

Eren moaned into the pillow, low and soft. Levi left kisses up his spine, making him shiver and tense up. "Fuck..." he breathed, sweat covering his forehead. "Deeper." He shouldn't be saying that, he shouldn't have even been in a situation deemed suitable for him to demand how his professor fucked him. 

Levi complied to Eren's request, but he kept his unhurried rhythm. "Better?"

Eren nodded. "God, yes." He could feel his toes curling as his release approached. His fingers grasped tighter onto the sheets, and it wasn't long before he and Levi finished. 

Levi placed a final kiss on Eren's nape and pulled out, starting his clean up routine.

Eren watched as Levi got everything sorted out and joined him back on the bed. Levi got under the sheets and reached for him. Eren took his arm and was surprised when Levi pulled him into his embrace, letting him rest his head on his chest with a arm wrapped securely around him. 

This was a bit of a trade off. Eren enjoyed this kind of sex more, because it felt like Levi was giving him more attention and maybe even cared. But he wasn't completely out of energy and warn out, so he had time to contemplate his predicament. 

"Do you want to spend the night?" Levi asked as if out of nowhere.

Eren thought about it. At least here, he wasn't alone, but this wasn't good for him. There was no guarantee that Mikasa would be back at their dorm before he went to bed. "Sure. If I'm welcome."

"If you weren't welcome, I wouldn't offer."

Eren chuckled. Then his good mood subsided. He was sleeping with a man he knew practically nothing about, despite how long this was going on. Levi probably knew even less about him. He was staying the night, he was welcome in his home, but they were not dating, and they would never surpass this stage. This man was supposed to guide him, help him be successful and teach him the ins and outs of his career path. But he was taking advantage of him. And Eren let him, practically handing himself over on a silver platter entirely aware of where they stood.

Eren's eyes watered. 

Levi blinked a few times, wondering what was wet on his chest. He heard a sniffle. "You okay?"

Eren nodded. "Yeah," he mumbled, irked that his tears could be heard in his voice.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Levi adjusted himself so Eren was at his level and he could look at him. "Was the sex that bad?"

Eren laughed briefly. "No, it was great. It's just... it doesn't matter, it's not for you to worry about. It's personal problems. I'm fine."

Levi gave him a look. "And I'm not stupid. Tell me what’s wrong."

Eren shook his head. "I don't wanna bother you with it, I'm okay. Really."

Levi huffed out a breath. He wasn't good at comforting people, but he didn't want things to get awkward. And he certainly believed anyone was less attractive while crying. "Well, I am your faculty advisor as well. It's not important if it's something personal or academic, if it affects your participation in class, I might have to step in. So, tell me about it."

Eren couldn't bring himself to say what was really on his mind about their arrangement. But Levi seemed persistent, so he decided to compromise and tell him a small portion of what was troubling him. "I'm just lonely a lot. I feel isolated."

Levi nodded. "Are you making time to be with your friends?"

"Yeah... but they can't make time for me."

"Can't or won't?"

"Can't," Eren reaffirmed. 

"Well... you can't exactly force them to change their schedule, but I get that that doesn't help you feel better. Are they trying to make time at least?"

Eren felt weird saying "they," seeing as Mikasa and maybe Jean on some days were the only friends he had contact with. "Yeah. They keep promising, but things come up."

"Then you can't ask more of them. And I know it's shit because you need interaction but they can't provide it and that's no ones fault. But you know they care, right?"

Eren nodded. "I know."

"Then give it time. It's not the answer you want, but that's all you can do right now."

Eren knew he was right. And he still hurt. But he would wait. People would be less busy. 

"They'll eventually be back. Until then... I can keep you company."

Eren knew that Levi probably meant that strictly on terms of sexual situations, but he did appreciate the sentiment. After all, Levi was the main source of human contact that he'd been having for awhile. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it... now stop crying on my sheets, they were expensive."

Eren laughed, resuming his earlier position on Levi's chest. He was grateful for Levi's genuine concern and honest advice. He was also amazed at Levi's ability to switch between unprofessionalism and professionalism in mere seconds. This made it even harder to quit these habits. Levi could charm him into forgetting that this was all wrong. But for now, he ignored that.

~

Eren would sometimes stop by Levi's office between classes. Levi would sometimes close the door while they would talk about upcoming weekend plans or make out but they'd never gone overboard on campus. Eren was just leaving Levi's office, but before he stepped out into the hallway where there were cameras, Levi pulled him back to give him a prolonged, deep and slow kiss. Levi let him go, bid him a good day and closed the door, having work to do.

Eren grinned ear to ear, reeling from the attention and swiveled on his heel, about to leave. He took a couple steps and looked up, finding Annie, gawking at him. His blood ran cold.

"Oh my god," she said, disgust evident in her voice and expression. 

Eren hurried over to her, wide eyed, shaking his head, ready to deny anything he had to. "Annie... Annie, listen."

She backed away from him, turning around the corner to a barren hallway. "I can't believe it... I am reporting him, I should've known."

"Annie, no!" Eren begged, catching up to her and keeping his voice low. "Annie, please, it's not like that."

"No wonder you're always getting special treatment, always getting good grades, you've been so obvious," she spat. "I'm gonna tell the dean."

"No! You can't! Annie, you can't tell anyone, you don't understand—"

"Like hell I won't say anything!" Annie put more distance between them. "You're out of your mind if you think I'm gonna let you get by on grades because you're banging the teacher!"

"Shh!" Eren held his hands out towards her. 

"Why should you pass for nothing while the rest of us have to work our asses off? It's not fair, and he shouldn't be fucking students!"

Eren shook his head. His heart was going a million miles a minute. "It's not like that, I'm not sleeping with him so he'll give me an 'A,' that's not what's going on, I swear!"

Annie stared in horror. "... You're sick!"

"No!" Eren could've started to cry, but he had priorities. He couldn't let anyone else find out. "Listen to me, it's not—"

"Why should I listen to you? You're fucking a forty year old—"

"He's not forty—"

"That's not the point!" Annie almost yelled. 

"Annie," Eren begged, checking around them to be sure they were still alone. "Please... I would never sleep with someone for benefits. I would never sleep with a professor to get better grades, I swear. You have to believe me."

"Then what did I just see? What was that in his office, huh?"

Eren shrunk, ashamed that they weren't more careful. Embarrassed that someone knew who he was seeing. "... Can you listen without judgement?"

"... I make no promises." Annie crossed her arms.

Eren took a deep breath. "... He's my boyfriend," he lied. "This started out of attraction, I swear this has nothing to do with grades. If I stopped coming to class, if I started doing poorly, I guarantee you, he would fail me just like anyone else. He holds no favoritism for me. And... he's not just going around fucking anybody, we're dating." He would say anything to keep Annie's mouth shut. "Please don't say anything, I'm begging you. I'm not cheating the system. He's not preying on students."

Annie seemed to give this consideration. 

"We just can't tell anyone about us because people will get the wrong idea, it'll look bad if people knew we were dating."

"... You bet it looks bad," Annie mumbled, rolling her eyes. 

"Please." Eren put his hands together.

Annie sighed. "You're really fucked if you're sleeping with someone who's literally twice your age... but I guess that's none of my business... I won't say anything."

"Thank you! Thank you so m—"

"But if I get the feeling that any of what you said isn't true, and you're using him for grades, I'm getting him fired. You can count on that."

Eren nodded. "I promise I'm not."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, sorry it's taking me so long. I hope this chapter wasn't too bad.
> 
> If you liked it, please leave a comment or kudos! I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. My tumblrs are dr--s-art and the-witch-daddy. Thanks for reading!!!


	12. Personal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Life's been uber busy. I got a job since I last posted, now I'm quitting for a new job lmao. It's a lot, forgive me.
> 
> Enjoy!

Hanji waited outside Levi's office, he should've been there by now. This was during his set office hours, he was required to be there. They tapped their foot, waiting, impatient. A few moments passed and they were joined by who they assumed was a student. He looked familiar, but they couldn't place where they'd seen him before.

"Do you have a meeting with professor Ackerman?" The student asked, assuming Hanji was a staff member.

"No, I just came to visit him and talk things over, nothing urgent. Are you scheduled to meet with him?"

The man shrugged. "He said to meet him during his office hours, but he didn't say what for." He looked around briefly, and when the silence was a little much, he decided to introduce himself. "I'm Eren."

Hanji put two and two together, staring at him. They knew exactly who he was now, this was the student Levi was sleeping with. And oh, how bad they felt for him. He looked like such a bright young man with a lot to offer.

Eren cleared his throat, figuring that the stranger didn't care who he was.

"Oh— sorry. I'm Hanji. I'm an old friend of Ackerman's."

Eren nodded along.

"You..." They didn't know if it was wise to discuss what they knew or if they should've left it be. "You're... I've heard a lot about you."

Eren stilled, watching Hanji nervously. Aside from being Levi's student, there was only one other means of affiliation he had with the man. "You have?"

Hanji felt bad, seeing how nervous Eren appeared. "... I have," they affirmed in a tone that communicated what they knew.

Eren tried looking anywhere but towards Hanji. He couldn't tell how they felt about his and Levi's 'relationship.' 

"Hey..." Hanji closed their eyes briefly, exhaling. "I know it's none of my business, but... you should probably distance yourself from Levi. Not academically. But you can do better and he needs to work out some of his own stuff before he should be with other people."

Eren didn't want to consider that. He loved Levi's attention, putting space between them was the last thing he wanted to do. "I..."

"I don't know how much you know about Levi or what you think your relationship is right now, but it would be better for both of you if you put a stop to it."

Eren frowned. "Are you saying that because you think he's too old for me?"

Hanji shook their head. "Your age really isn't the problem. It's that it's not professional considering his job and he can't offer you more than what's going on now. He won't give you a real relationship. He doesn't want commitment."

Eren's stomach turned hearing those words. "Who says I want commitment?" He did want that down the line, but that wasn't of Hanji's concern.

Hanji sighed, shrugging. They couldn't argue with that. 

Levi came down the hallway, excusing himself between the two. "Sorry I'm late, was advising another student," he said, unlocking his office door. He entered and ushered Eren inside. "Hanji, this'll only be a minute, I'll be right with you."

Hanji forced a clearly false smile. "Kay."

Levi shut the door and took a seat across from Eren. "So—"

"Hanji knows?"

Levi nodded solemnly. "Yeah... but they won't tell anyone who can get either of us in trouble, there's nothing to worry about."

Eren stared at his shoes.

"Did they say anything to you?"

"... No," Eren lied.

Levi nodded again, noticing Eren's nerves but decided he couldn't do anything about it. "So, I asked you to come here because I have an opportunity for you. There's an art show coming up next week for seniors. They have extra spaces available but no more seniors submitting work, so now it's open to the rest of the students. You're one of the most advanced students of mine, so I recommended you and several others, would you be interested in displaying your work?"

Eren perked up. "... I can be in the senior show?"

"If you'd like to. I would have to choose which pieces to display, so unfortunately that's out of your hands, but I highly suggest you participate in this. It would look real nice for a four year college."

Eren grinned, honored that Levi thought he was good enough to be in the senior show. His smile faltered when he remembered a conversation from earlier that week. "By any chance, can you tell me who else you're going to pick?"

Levi raised a brow at him. "I suppose, why?"

"... Is Annie Leonhardt one of the ones you chose?"

"No, why?"

Eren's heart sank. If he was given any more special treatment, she might report Levi. Perhaps if she was also chosen, she'd overlook it. But she wasn't. "... She knows about us."

Levi straightened up in his chair. "Did you tell her?"

"No!" Eren was quick to say. "No, she saw us when I was leaving your office one day. She thought I was sleeping with you in exchange for grades. I told her I wasn't and she believed me but she's keeping a close eye on how you treat me."

Levi sat back, analyzing the situation. "... Do you think she'd stay quiet if you were given a space in the show?"

"I don't know..."

"Well... give it time, think about it, and if you feel that she wouldn't see it as favor, let me know, and we'll get you in that show."

Eren nodded. "Okay."

Levi stood, gesturing for Eren to do the same and they both left the office. Levi let Hanji inside and resumed his earlier position at his desk. "You said something, didn't you?"

"I had to," Hanji defended themselves. "He looks like a smart kid, he deserves better."

"I'm not mistreating him."

"Aren't you, though?" Hanji paced around the office. "This isn't good for either of you."

Levi stared at his friend. He didn't see what he was doing as an immoral thing, at least not to the degree that they did. He had no intentions of hurting Eren. Or any of his other students that he had done this with for that matter. But it didn't seem that Hanji understood that. "You need to let this go."

"No Levi, you need to let this go. Tell him it's over. Tell him—"

Levi stood. "Don't tell me what to do."

Hanji held his stare. "Someone has to."

~

Eren moped in his dorm. He had an incredible chance to get recognition for what he could do, but fear of being caught was the only thing standing in his way. If Annie didn't know, or if he wasn't sleeping with Levi all together, this wouldn't be holding him back. He was going to college first and foremost to get an education. To improve his skills and to get a head start in his career. Not maintain a position as one of the professor's playthings. Would it be worth it to risk Annie outing them? Then he wondered, would he get in trouble at all? Levi was the one being unprofessional. Would Eren get any repercussions at all? He wasn't sure. But even so, he didn't want Levi to be punished, even though that would be for the best so that he couldn't do this to anymore students in the future. He reflected on that and thought about how fucked up he must've been if he was allowing behavior that he would've tried to stop from reaching anyone else. He felt sick. 

Mikasa came into their dorm and threw her book bag to the ground, laying on her bed, exhausted. "I'm hungry."

"Me too," Eren mumbled. 

Mikasa reluctantly got up from her comfy bed. "Let's go to the dining hall then."

The two made their way out of the dorms and down to the dining hall. They got their food and moved to an empty table. Eren only picked at his dinner, not in the mood to have a filling meal. 

"So, what's got you feeling so down?" Mikasa asked.

Eren shrugged. "Just tired."

"I don't believe that, you've been like this for a few days now."

"I've been tired for a few days."

Mikasa rolled her eyes taking a bite of her food. "I just want to help. I want you to feel better."

Eren sighed. "You can't, trust me."

"I don't even know what you're going through. If I knew, maybe I could help you. And if I can't, at least you'll be getting it off your chest."

"I can't talk about it."

"What do you mean you can't? Like you're not allowed?" Eren remained silent. "... Is it because we haven't hung out? Like really hung out, not sitting and talking about unimportant shit?" No reply. "Eren, we've both been really busy, but I'll make it up to you. This weekend, I promise."

Eren knew he shouldn't have said anything, he knew he'd only respond this way because he was already upset. "You said that last week."

Mikasa set her hand on Eren's. "I know, and something came up—"

"Something always comes up, every time you say we're gonna hang out."

Mikasa frowned. "That's not my fault, I don't do it on purpose."

"No, it's not your fault. It's no ones fault," Eren mumbled, staring at the table. 

"It isn't anyone's fault, things just happen and no one prepares for them, nobody's to blame. Are you suggesting that every time I cancel, it's because I changed my mind?"

Eren sat quietly for a moment before shrugging.

Mikasa stared for a moment, unable to fathom why her friend was acting like this. "Eat by yourself if you're gonna have an attitude." She stood to leave, taking her food and pushing in her chair. She would've walked away if a sniffle didn't stop her in her tracks. She looked to see Eren's head down, his eyes watering.

"I'm sorry," Eren mumbled. "I didn't mean it."

Mikasa sat back down. 

Eren willed away the rest of his tears. "I've just got so much going on, and I don't see you anymore... I don't see anyone, and I'm exhausted and I'm lonely... I don't get human interaction outside of classes, and even then, we're working so it's nothing meaningful. It's not enough. I'm sorry, I know you're busy."

Mikasa felt guilty for never being available, but it was out of her hands. "Why don't you hang out with your other friends in the meantime?"

Eren couldn't tell her that he didn't really make any friends, since he'd been using that as an excuse for every time he went to Levi's house. "They're busy too."

"... We'll figure something out. I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that didn't suck.
> 
> If you liked this, please leave a comment or kudos! I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. Thanks for reading!


	13. Expectations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayooo I'm back!
> 
> Life is still pretty busy, but now in more of a good way.
> 
> Hope you guys like the chapter!

Making the decision to opt out of the senior show was a difficult one, but Eren couldn't risk Annie using that as leverage to get Levi fired. Levi was disappointed to hear his student wasn't taking advantage of this opportunity, but he understood his reasoning. Class started and Levi called everyone's attention.

"Before we begin today, I'd like to remind you all of the senior art show tomorrow night," he said, pacing leisurely in front of his students. "It's entirely optional, you can go and see the gallery whenever you like, but for the opening, please dress formally if you're attending. There'll be refreshments, you can invite whoever you like. I highly suggest you all go, it'll be good to see the work from seniors who share your major."

Eren didn't even want to go. He didn't want to see what he was missing out on. 

Class went by as per usual. Students were drawing, Levi was criticizing, Eren's work made it on the wall. At the end of class, Levi beckoned Eren over to his desk after the other students had gone. "Listen... I don't want you to miss out on the art show," Levi said. "This could mean a lot of good things for your future, it's great exposure. I've given it a lot of thought, and I'm willing to put one of Annie's pieces in the show if you think that's enough to keep her from reporting us."

Eren lightened up. "You can do that? The show is tomorrow—"

"I can pull some strings, just leave it to me. So, what do you think? Do you want to be in the show?" Levi smirked at how elated Eren looked. 

"Of course! I don't see why Annie would see it as favoritism if she's also in the show. But... we're not the only two who aren't seniors, right?"

"No, there are five other underclassmen who were selected. So, you're definitely not a sore thumb in the mix."

Eren was so grateful to Levi. Though he was also painfully aware that getting Annie in the show for their own security was an abuse of his position.

~

That night, Eren went to Levi's home. Mikasa was stuck in the computer lab, working on a project for digital applications, so he figured another night with his professor couldn't worsen his loneliness. 

As a reward for making it into the show, Levi treated Eren. He ran a hot bath, letting his student sit between his legs and lean on his chest while he massaged whatever areas he could reach. To say that Eren was relaxed was an understatement. He felt more pampered than ever. 

"You should be proud that you made it into the show," Levi commented, tending to Eren's biceps.

"Is it cheating? If you're the reason I got in?"

"I wouldn't have allowed it if I didn't believe you were good enough."

Eren felt his heart skip a beat. "... What about Annie?"

Levi sighed. "She's not quite at the senior level. I did mostly let her in because it would mean an easier time for you, but she does have one or two pieces that excel. Overall, I wouldn't say she's where you're at, but on occasion she outdoes herself, so I just asked for those specific pieces."

Eren felt a little less guilty after hearing that. He didn't think it was right for someone to be in the show if they hadn't earned it, even if that meant himself. But he supposed if Annie had individual works that fit the show, it wouldn't have been too much of an abuse of position on Levi's part. 

Levi kissed the juncture of Eren's neck, making the other hum in appreciation. "She's not giving you any trouble is she?"

"No..." Eren avoided mentioning that Annie did see him differently now and occasionally looked judgmentally towards him when Levi would stand beside him, offering critique. He didn't want to hear Levi defend what they had because he knew it wasn't worth defending. 

"Good," Levi said against his skin, moving his lips down Eren's shoulder. For once, Eren wasn't completely blinded by Levi's actions while getting intimate. Typically, he'd be too overwhelmed by the way Levi touched him, how he spoke to him, how he took care of him. This time, he was conscious of the severity of his position, but that didn't mean he had intentions of stopping. He couldn't put his finger on it, whether it was the different setting in the water, the fact that Levi was, in a way, abusing his job, or that this had just been going on for way too long. Whatever it was, he knew he couldn't keep this up for much longer. But Levi gave him such good attention.

Levi wove his hands around Eren's waist, his touch reaching lower and lower. Eren helped his hand along, his head falling back, onto Levi's shoulder. Neither of them were in the mood for something fast, something hard. Just enough to get off and relax for the night.

Levi gave Eren a gentle push, signaling for him to sit up. Once up, he turned him around so they could face each other, and Levi pulled him close again. He connected their lips in a slow, sensual kiss, letting Eren wrap his arms around his neck. 

Something was different, Eren kept thinking this was wrong. Not in the sense that this was morally ambiguous, he'd known that for some time now. More so that he wanted more from their arrangement. Levi ran his hands down Eren's thighs, settling briefly onto his hips. Eren didn't feel that this was fair, not that he had for awhile, but he was starting to get angry at the situation. Angry at Levi. But how could he feel that way? He'd never asked more of Levi. Levi had never implied they'd be anything more. But maybe if Levi had feelings for him this would be okay.

~

Eren begged Mikasa as they got into her car, Jean sitting in the back. "Please tell me you're free after the show."

Mikasa sighed. "I had to move things around just so I could make it to the show. I've got a project to work on once we get back. It's due Monday."

Eren stared down at his lap. He knew that if he couldn't find someone else to spend his time with, he'd probably end up back at Levi's house, and that was the last thing he needed to do. "Jean, are you free to hang out?"

"Sorry, I haven't even started my project," Jean apologized. "It's the same thing Mikasa's gotta do, and it's gonna take me forever."

"Oh... well, thanks for coming to the show, it means a lot." He was grateful for the support of his friends, he just wished they were more available. That his will was strong enough to not rely on them to keep from making mistakes. 

They took part in idle chatter until they got to the venue and shuffled inside. It was too cold for the formal wear they all had on. The place was packed, the gallery had plenty of work and Eren was surprised that there were so many people in the community who wanted to see what the students of their college had to offer. Eren could spot a few of the other art teachers, but so far, not the one he needed to avoid.

"Let's go find your work!" Mikasa prompted, taking Eren's hand and leading him and Jean through the mass. They waded through people, glancing on the walls until Eren found something he recognized. The three stepped closer until they had a perfect view of one of his pieces that he'd made in figure drawing class.

"Wow, that's amazing," Jean commented. "I can see why they picked you to be in the show." 

"Thanks." Eren worried that maybe Levi chose him for other reasons. Maybe it wasn't because he was good enough.

Mikasa leaned into Eren's side. "I'm really proud of you."

Eren smiled at that. "Thank you."

"This is big," Mikasa continued. "Your first semester and you already have a guest spot in a senior show." Mikasa took out her phone and took a picture of the artwork. "Get next to it! I wanna get a picture of you with your breakthrough piece!"

Eren felt genuine pride at that. He did feel lucky to have made it. He just hoped it was for the right reasons. He stepped to the side of his art, and smiled at his friends. He heard a couple snaps from the camera and Mikasa sent him a thumbs up. Eren grinned down at his feet and shuffled back. When he looked up, he locked eyes with someone he hoped he wouldn't find. 

"Congratulations," Levi said, gaining the attention of his student and his friends. 

Eren stared at him, examining his suit. Levi dressed only slightly more formal than usual, seeing as he tried to remain professional (on terms of clothing) when in class. 

"Your piece seems to be a favorite," Levi said, gesturing to the surrounding people.

"... Thank you." Eren didn't know what else to say.

"Eren, we're gonna check out some of the other work," Mikasa said, taking her leave with Jean.

That was the last thing he needed, to be left alone with Levi. 

"Your friends?" Levi asked.

"Yeah..." Eren murmured. 

Levi nodded. "Jean was always a pain in my class. Good artist, though."

Eren huffed out an amused breath at that. 

Levi scanned the work on the wall. "You should take a look at Annie's work sometime. She had some good stuff to pick from..."

"I just got here, my friends just pulled me along until they found something I did."

"Mn." Levi nodded. "Take a look around, you can learn a lot from the seniors in this show. There's one near the back wall, I want you to look closely at their mark making and see how they use it in their deeper values." 

This was okay. This was the kind of subject that they should've been having on the regular, Eren thought. Nothing that could get Levi fired or get himself kicked out of college for. This was how things should've been. 

"I'll take a look," Eren said.

Levi put a hand on Eren's shoulder. "This is a good start for you, getting in the senior show for your first semester."

Eren shut his eyes briefly. Levi could've told him that without touching him. But he couldn't bring himself to shrug off his hand.

Levi brought himself in a tad closer. "What are your plans for after the show?"

Eren tossed a look over to where Mikasa and Jean were admiring other students' work. They didn't have the time for him. And he didn't want to be alone, especially not after an occasion like this. "I was hoping... I could stay with you."

"Of course, I was looking forward to the same thing."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof our boy is in deep
> 
> I hope you liked the chapter! If you did, it would mean a lot if you left a comment or kudos!
> 
> My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit. Thanks for reading!


	14. Burning Bridges

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want to read something that's going to make you feel better and forget the state of the world right now, this is not what I recommend 
> 
> Enjoy!

Mikasa and Jean left the art show after Eren made the excuse that he'd be leaving with a friend from class. Of course, now that the event was winding down, Levi was the man he gravitated towards.

"Will you be ready to leave after one more circle around?" Levi asked, wanting to get a last glance at all the art.

Eren nodded. "Sure."

Levi raised an eyebrow at his student. "Everything alright?"

Eren shook himself from his thoughts, throwing on a smile for Levi. "Yeah, sorry. Just got distracted."

Levi smirked. "Eager, are you?" He gave Eren a subtle nudge. "We'll be out of here soon— ah shit." Levi's face turned sour. He grimaced at the floor, sighing exasperatedly.

Eren furrowed his brows. "What? What's wrong?"

Levi lightly tugged on Eren's arm, urging him to turn around. "Let's go the other way, I just saw—"

"Professor Ackerman!" 

Levi rolled his eyes, facing the direction where the voice came from, trying to seem as neutral as possible. "Hello, Petra." In front of them stood a young woman, only slightly older than Eren with auburn hair. Levi clearly wasn't as happy to see her as she was.

Petra seemed glad to find Levi, but at the same time, apprehensive. "Hi! How are you...? How are things going?" She fiddled with her hands.

Eren tossed a glance between then two, wondering how they knew each other. 

Levi shrugged. "I'm busy. Classes are going well. How have you been?" He didn't appear to care too much about the answer. 

Petra gushed, smiling nervously. "I'm great... got a new job recently. I'm designing websites at the moment, and that's working out really well."

"That's great," Levi commented. He and Petra continued to talk idly, while Eren watched, trying to guess why his professor seemed so uncomfortable. Trying to understand what went on between these two in the past. It didn't take him long to put two and two together.

Petra bit her lip. "So... I was wondering if maybe... if you're interested of course, if we could go get coffee sometime? Or maybe lunch?"

Levi tucked in his lips and tried to look anywhere but at the other person. He scratched the back of his neck. "Um... I'm not sure I'd really be available anytime soon..."

Petra didn't give up but became visibly discouraged. "Oh. I'm in no rush. It would just be nice to catch up more and... see where things go."

Eren's chest hurt. Despite how Levi would answer, he knew exactly what this was. An offer to pursue a relationship, on what level he wasn't certain, and he didn't really care. He wanted to leave, this was too much to watch.

"That's not really a good idea..." Levi said.

Petra's expression fell. "... Alright." She looked down at her feet. "I'm... sorry to have bothered you."

Levi shook his head. "It's not a bother. It's just... not something that should happen."

"I understand." With that, Petra waved and shuffled away.

Eren could feel his heart pounding, ready to leap out of his chest. This is what he feared. He was afraid that he would let himself be used until he was thrown away without a second glance, and by that point, he would be isolated from everyone who really cared for him. Now he saw how Levi treated former students who he slept with, and he felt sick.

Levi guided him out of the building and into his car. He noticed Eren's silence and felt beyond annoyed over Petra's interference. "Sorry. That was an old student of mine."

"I figured," Eren mumbled.

Levi couldn't lie to his student, that would've been insulting. He knew that Eren wasn't dumb enough to misinterpret what had just occurred. And to insist that Petra had meant anything else or had meant anything different to him would be wasted breath. But now it was obvious that Eren held other thoughts after hearing their conversation. "... What are you thinking?" He had no clue how to get out of this predicament.

Eren didn't want to think about any of it. He just needed the distraction. Clearly neither he nor Levi wanted to dwell on the subject. "I'm thinking I want you to get me back into your bed so we can forget about this." He cursed himself for not having enough respect for himself to let this be the last straw.

~

Eren entered his dorm, exhausted after a long night with his professor. It was the morning after the show and he felt so empty. Another night with someone who didn't give a damn about him, another night without his friends who he meant something to. 

Mikasa welcomed her friend back, offering him a hug. "Wild night out after your big success?"

Eren forced a small smile. "You could say that." 

Mikasa pulled back and in doing so, caught a glimpse of Eren's neck and the mark that was left there. "Is that...? Is that a hickey?"

Eren closed his eyes, exhaling heavily. "It doesn't matter." He dropped himself onto his bed, uncaring about anything.

"Eren! Are you serious? Who did you go home with last night?" Mikasa was infinitely more amused than her friend was. She didn't know the half of it, so of course she decided to poke fun at him. 

"I don't wanna talk about it," Eren grumbled into his pillow.

"Sorry it was bad," Mikasa joked. "Good for you though, having a night out. I'm glad you could spare an evening instead of having to work nonstop. Which reminds me, Jean's coming over soon so we can work on our projects together."

Eren tried tuning her out. He couldn't devote the time to think about anything other than how he could get out of this situation. How he could stop depending on the attention of an older man to keep his head above water. How he could spend valuable time with his friends. How he could actually make more friends. How he could distance himself from Levi. 

"This project is just kicking my ass, I'm glad I could afford at least one night away for your show—"

Eren could feel his chest caving in. He adored every second Levi would look at him like he was something special or like he was something for the taking. It made no difference, the attention was on him and undivided. Someone wanted him. He lived for every touch Levi would send his way. He wasn't receiving that from anyone else, so he'd take it as long as he could get it.

"I'm still so impressed with the work you put out. I'm so proud of you! You must've worked so hard—"

Levis words were always of praise or of lust. Never did he utter a word that made him feel like he wasn't enough or that he was average. He hated that all these things that made him feel so good were, at the end of the day, bad for him. It wasn't fair.

"Do you have any pictures from the show?"

Eren absentmindedly handed over his phone to Mikasa after unlocking it. "You can go through my photos. Send yourself whichever ones you like."

Mikasa gladly accepted and started swiping. 

This was not what he thought he would be doing when he started college. This wasn't what he hoped to get out of his education, it was nearly enough to make him drop out. But then he would have no one. Not a single person who'd give him the time of day. And that's what he dreaded the most.

"Eren! Oh my god!" Mikasa dropped his phone. She looked back at her friend, mortified. "Oh my god!"

Eren, startled, sat up and stared at Mikasa. "What? What's wrong?"

Mikasa looked to be experiencing more emotions than she could catch up with. Disgust, betrayal, anger, disappointment, worry, it was too much to really tell. "Was that Ackerman?!"

Eren frowned and the realization suddenly hit him. He jumped out of bed to reach his phone from off the ground and checked whatever Mikasa reacted to. His heart sank.

There, on his phone, was a picture of himself with Levi, that his professor had taken the night prior. They were in a less than dignified position. That was enough to connect all the dots for Mikasa.

"I can't believe you're sleeping with a professor!" Mikasa shouted.

"Be quiet!" Eren tried to shush her. "It's not what you think!"

Mikasa lowered her voice some, not intending to announce it to the whole residence halls. "I'm not sure that's true, because based on what I saw, I think you're fucking a professor!"

Eren was so broken after everything, he couldn't handle this on top of it all. He shook his head. "No, I'm not—"

"Then what was that?" Mikasa stood firmly in one spot, pointing at the phone, as if it were dirty. 

"I... I can't..."

"Eren... I don't know what is going on, but whatever you're doing isn't safe, I can guarantee you—"

"Stop! You're not listening!" Eren could feel his face growing warmer and his eyes watering with anger. He didn't know why he tried to deny it, the truth was made quite clear. Had he been thinking straight, he would have realized that given a calm explanation and the right amount of time, Mikasa would understand. But he didn't want her to know. She wouldn't tell anyone. She wouldn't give out any information that could hurt him, but in that moment, he just didn't want her to know the truth. He was too embarrassed, too ashamed.

"Are you listening?" Mikasa countered. "Eren, why didn't you tell me—"

"It's none of your business!" Eren screamed. "That's not what's happening!"

"I don't know what you're trying to do, but I'm not going to believe that you're not fucking Ackerman when I just saw a picture where that's clearly what you two were doing—"

"You what?"

Eren and Mikasa turned to face their door to find Jean standing in the entrance, just as repulsed as Mikasa felt. Eren shook his head, but it was too late. Jean hadn't been standing there for awhile, but he was there long enough to understand what was being discussed.

Eren felt like his chest would cave in. "No—"

"You're having sex with professor Ackerman?" Jean accused. 

Mikasa was caught between reprimanding Eren and ushering Jean out. As upset as she was, she didn't want to bring in an audience and jury for her friend's very private mistake.

"I'm not," Eren defended, dizzy from fighting off questions and attacks from every angle. "Jean, listen—"

"That is... I can't... you're disgusting!" Jean couldn't process the new information. "He's a fucking professor! Not to mention, he's an asshole. Do you know how old he is?"

Mikasa held a hand out, trying to silence him. Eren didn't need everyone coming at him all at once. "Jean please—"

"Please what?" Jean interrupted, repulsed with Eren. "Are you defending him? Do you think that's okay?"

Eren could vomit with how sick he felt.

"I'm not saying that," Mikasa sighed. "But don't—"

"I should report that. Who knows how many students Ackerman is fucking?" 

That comment was the straw that broke the camel's back. Eren could feel stray tears falling last his eyes. 

Jean looked over to him, shaking his head. "You're fucking sick, you know that?"

Eren made his way over to the door. "Jean," he begged.

"No!" Jean backed away, out of the room. "Keep your fucking distance from me, got it? I'm not interested in being around someone like you." He spared one last glance at Mikasa before exiting the suite.

Eren brought a trembling hand up to his forehead as more tears streamed down. His decision to be with Levi and his carelessness costed him a friend when he couldn't afford to lose any more. 

Mikasa shut the door, hoping that would provide more privacy. She didn't want their conversation to end up that way, involving someone when it wasn't necessary. "Eren... I know a lot must be going through your head, but you need to realize just what you've got yourself into."

Eren's lip quivered as he brought down his hand over his eyes. "... Just stop."

Mikasa crossed her arms, treading closer to her friend, calmer than her first approach. "I can't let you continue to do this. You're gonna end up hurting yourself if you haven't already." It broke her heart to see her best friend this upset, this lost. "Look at you, the stress of putting yourself in this position... look what it's doing to you."

Eren gave up with trying to lie and cover up his private life. "Leave it alone," he said, voice shaking. "Just let me—"

"I want what's best for you. I don't want to keep hurting yourself. This is dangerous."

"Shut up!" Eren yelled, his voice cracking. He brushed his fingers through his hair, his eyes fixed on the ground. "Stop... please. It's none of your business, just stop..."

Mikasa gave him some space, but persisted. "... Let me help. I can't stand to see you like this. Is this why you've been so exhausted lately? Is this why you've been so on edge? Is this where you've been going all this time?"

Eren scrunched his eyes shut. "I don't want to talk about it... it's not your business..."

"I know it's not, but you're my best friend and I want you to be okay. This is clearly hurting you—"

"Stop," Eren whimpered.

"— and I can help. You just have to let me know what I can do for you."

"Stop."

Mikasa held Eren's hand. "If you want, we can go tell the dean or human resources or someone. We can make sure he gets the consequences—"

"No!" Eren cried. "I don't want him to get in trouble, I don't want anyone else to know, don't you get that?" He turned away from her. "Just drop it, it's not your concern..."

"I can't just sit back and do nothing when you're feeling this way."

Eren faced her again. "... He's not making me sleep with him. I'm choosing to... I want this." The look on his friend's face said everything he needed to know about how she felt about that. She was shocked, scared, judgmental towards him now.

"I..."

Eren realized that was a mistake to tell her that. He grabbed his coat, his phone and his scarf. Mikasa tried to stop him, but he just slid on his shoes and left. It was too much for him to handle.

His best friend knew about his biggest shame. Another friend now hated him and had plans of exposing him and Levi. He cried harder as he left the building, out for a walk, hopeless over his situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof.
> 
> If you liked this, please leave a comment or kudos! I don't edit, so I'm sorry if there's any mistakes. My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!!!


	15. Unfair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *cue "Nobody" by Mitzki*

Eren stood outside Levi's door, biting his lip. He'd made up his mind.

A few days had passed since he'd been found out. Mikasa spoke to Jean and he admitted that he wouldn't actually report Levi, but he had no intentions of being involved with Eren in any way anymore. Mikasa still spoke to Eren, but it was always brief. She didn't know what to say to him. Eren had to cut it off, this would be the last time he saw Levi in an unprofessional setting.

He hesitantly raised his hand. This all would've been easier if Levi wasn't his professor. If Levi had any intentions of pursuing a real relationship with him, then Eren wouldn't have to end anything. He reluctantly knocked.

It wasn't long before Levi opened the door, grinning upon seeing his student. Eren returned a smile, trying not to appear as mentally drained as he was. He was ushered inside and the door was shut behind them. 

Conscious that this would be their final time together outside of class, Eren savored every look on the way up to the bedroom, every touch that landed on his skin. Once in the bedroom, the lamp providing the only light they needed, Eren was pressed down onto the mattress. Levi left kisses starting just below his ear, working his way down his neck and onto his clavicle as he pushed the hem of Eren's shirt up.

It was such an effort for Eren to keep in mind that the way Levi was treating him was not reflective on his intentions. It hurt that the hands on him conveyed so much care when Eren knew full well his professor wanted nothing to do with him past a physical relationship. All of this attention was meaningless. 

Eren pushed back so he could sit up and pull Levi into a hungry kiss. Cutting this off would be easier if it felt more rough than sentimental. He bit at Levi's lip, which was well received by the older man, earning him fingers weaved into his hair, pulling gently. Levi worked his tongue into Eren's mouth and gave his student opportunity to reciprocate. 

Eren was going to miss this. Miss the undivided attention from another person, the sensations that came with being treated like something special. Now not even Jean would be there, he had no interest after learning about his activities with a professor. And Mikasa was too upset to speak with him. Perhaps a good therapist would be an appropriate substitute. At least then he would listened to and could address his loneliness in a healthy way. 

Levi helped him remove his shirt completely then worked on taking off his own. 

Eren tried not to think about anything other than his surroundings. He couldn't think about how his few friends would be mortified to know he was sleeping with Levi again after they'd expressed their anger and disgust. He couldn't think of all the photos Levi had of him and how he might use them against him if he misjudged how well Levi would take this coming to an end. He really hadn't been as careful as he knew he should've, but it was too late to worry over it too much. 

Levi ran his hands over Eren's ribs and down to his hips, grabbing on and leaving indents beneath his nails. He pulled back just far enough to look into the other's eyes. "God, you're fucking gorgeous," he whispered. He slipped his hands under Eren's waistband. "Doesn't take much for you to get all red, does it?"

Eren averted his gaze. Even after all these times together, any kind of praise made his heart pound. 

Levi put a hand to the other's cheek, making him look back at him. He took his other hand and put it down the front of Eren's jeans. "I love it when you get shy like that."

As they undressed, Eren felt a wave of emotions overtake him. His mind was clouded since the moment he got there, but now it was almost enough to make him leave. He was angry at himself for letting things get so out of hand, angry at Levi for not feeling something more for him, even though he couldn't force him to. He knew it wasn't fair to expect another person to grow feelings for him, but he was so confused with his feelings, and he hoped for anything to be reciprocated. But Levi returned nothing. The only fondness he held was for Eren's appearance, for his body.

Levi latched onto Eren's neck with his teeth while he prepared him. Eren grabbed Levi's shoulders, knowing he should've pushed him away, and only wanted to keep him close. 

"Fuck," Eren keened, being entered. He urged Levi on, he didn't even wait to get accustomed to the sensation. 

Levi nipped at his students ear, then his cheek, anywhere he pleased as his pace sped up. 

Eren made a move to touch his ignored cock, but Levi beat him to it, stroking him in time with his thrusts. Eren's mouth dropped and his professor took the opportunity to connect their lips and sneak his tongue in. 

Eren cursed himself for moaning. Levi didn't deserve to experience his pleasure, he thought to himself. He thought, after this, he would make sure the next person would give a damn about him. They would be worth his time. 

Levi sucked on Eren's tongue, his hips and hand gaining in speed. Eren hated that he could so easily take him apart, physically and emotionally. It wasn't fair that someone who didn't love him had so much control over his body and thoughts.

It wasn't long before they both felt their ends nearing. Eren disconnected their lips and turned his face into the pillow. Levi didn't like that, he grabbed Eren's chin, directing him back into a kiss while they both reached their climax. 

This was it.

Levi cleaned up as per usual and joined Eren in bed, under the covers so they could bask in the afterglow. But Eren felt more dread than bliss. Levi put an arm around his student's shoulders, pulling him close so he could lay on his chest. That did the opposite of helping the situation. He took Eren's hand, interlocking their fingers and relaxed into the mattress. 

~

After a considerable amount of time, right about when Levi would prompt the other for another round, Eren made up his mind. It was time to tell him.

It was like the man knew. He kept leaving soft kisses on the top of Eren's head, he gently traced his thumb back and forth on his hand, he was doing anything but making the process easy on either of them.

Eren took a deep, shaky breath. "... Levi?"

"Mn?" The man hummed.

Eren prepared himself for the worst, immediately and with due time. He prepared himself for screaming, a door slammed in his face, dirty looks and the affects in class. He prepared himself for crashing grades, harsh critiques, lack of attention and insults on his art. "Um... I need to tell you something."

Levi sensed urgency and worry in his tone. "What is it?"

Eren, pulled from him slightly, laying in his side to face him, which didn't do much, considering it was damn near impossible for him to look him in the eye. "I... I'm sorry if this seems like it's coming out of nowhere... but, I can't do this anymore."

Levi blinked at him. Almost as if he hadn't heard him.

"We have to stop."

Levi's expression wasn't an easy one to read. He calculated what he'd just been told and couldn't quite process it. He'd always been the one to end things with his students. "Oh..."

Eren grew more nervous, unsure how the other man was taking it. "I'm sorry."

Levi shook his head lightly. "No, no it's fine." His eyes wouldn't meet Eren's, he was too deep in thought. "So... this was the last time," he said. It wasn't a question, it was a statement. 

"It was." Eren knew very well that he didn't owe Levi an apology or an explanation, but guilt still clouded his mind over it all. Levi may not have had feelings for him, but he had feelings for Levi. Thinking about that made him feel even worse, knowing he was going to be taking this harder than the other man was. He made a move to sit up. "I'll get out of your way."

Levi looked up at him. "You don't need to tell me anything if you don't want to, but... is there a reason why? Or are you just done?"

Eren nodded, sat up, keeping the blankets around his waist. "Yeah... you didn't do anything wrong, if that's what you're worried about." His heart raced faster the more he explained. "This just... isn't good for me. Not right now anyways. What we're doing isn't working for me. I've been thinking a lot lately and it's not doing me any good mentally to be with someone if there's nothing behind it, you know? I need to know the other person has feelings for me, I don't want something like this anymore. I'm sorry."

Levi processed everything he'd just been told and adjusted, holding himself up with his elbow. "Wait. So, you're ending this because you want someone who feels something beyond sexual attraction?"

Eren nodded. "Yes."

Levi could feel his gut turning at what he was about to do. He hadn't even said it yet and he felt mortified with how badly he was about to fuck with this poor man. He sat up fully. "Then... how could you leave?" He asked with a level voice.

Lost, Eren furrowed his brows. "What?"

Levi always knew deep down (perhaps way deep down) that he wasn't, at his core, a good person. But he surprised himself in this moment. This was going to be outright wrong. And he couldn't bring himself to stop. "Eren, do you really think I'd risk my job for somebody I don't care about?"

Eren's heart jumped and he felt all the air leave his lungs. Levi cursed himself upon seeing his reaction.

"Wait," Eren breathed, trying to wrap his head around it. "You... you—"

"Of course, Eren." Levi reached out, taking his student's hand in his. "I'm sorry I didn't make it more clear, that's my fault."

Eren felt his face reddening. He searched his thoughts, trying to find anything he missed, anything he could've over looked, something that proved Levi reciprocated his feelings. But when he came up short, he couldn't find it in himself to care. Levi was saying it right now. That's what mattered to him. 

Overwhelmed, Eren closed their distance, bringing Levi into a kiss. Levi rolled his eyes, half at Eren's affection, half at himself. He could only make things worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter but quick update, let me know what your thoughts were :)
> 
> Any comments or kudos are greatly appreciated!! I don't edit, I'm sorry for any errors.
> 
> My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. Thank you so much for reading!


	16. No Limits

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy 4/20 blaze it

"You told him fucking what?" Hanji screamed, slamming down their beer on Levi's countertop.

"I know! I know!" Levi groaned, pacing, twirling his own glass in his hand. "God, I know, I'm a fucking piece of shit for doing that to him."

"Oh, well I'm glad you've finally come to that conclusion," Hanji mocked him. "Good to know you're acknowledging it, bravo Levi, Jesus Christ," they said, taking a swig of their beer.

Levi dragged his free hand down his face, groaning. "I don't know why I said that, I don't want a relationship with the guy! I don't want a relationship period!"

"Then what the hell were you thinking telling him you had feelings for him?"

"I don't know!" Levi leaned up against the wall, tilting his head back. "I just... I panicked, I guess. It was gonna get awkward in class, and I didn't wanna stop fucking him. I know I shouldn't have done it, it's not fair to him. I don't know what to do now."

Hanji got off their chair, setting down their drink. "I'll tell you what you're gonna do. Next time you see him, you're gonna apologize. You're gonna tell him you don't feel anything for him, that you screwed up and that he's right, and you shouldn't see each other outside of class anymore. Then you're gonna be professional in class and treat him exactly the same as your other students, like you should've done in the first place. Beyond that, maybe stop fucking your students and get a grip. If you want someone to fuck, ask someone your own age, ask someone outside of your job. Or maybe just jack off when you're horny, I don't give a fuck, but you need to stop."

Levi considered doing that, looking away in the thought. "No," he mumbled.

Hanji adjusted their glasses. "What was that?"

Levi tapped his glass against his lip, thinking, then looked back at Hanji. "No, I want to keep sleeping with Eren."

"Are you kidding me, Levi?!" Hanji screamed indignantly. "Are you fucking kidding me?! Did you get anything from this conversation? You fucking admitted it! You said you fucked up! You said you shouldn't have said you cared for him! You stood there and told me you did something wrong! And you're gonna shrug it off and say 'oh but that's in the past' and do it again?" They ran their hands through their hair ready to pull it out. "God! You're shit! You're such an idiot, you're a fucking asshole Levi! And you don't even care!"

Levi frowned. "Yeah? Okay, I'm an asshole!" He said, his volume matching his friend's. "But it doesn't matter. He's a big boy, if he wants to walk out, he can do that whenever he wants. And yeah, I shouldn't have said what I did, but I'm fucking lonely, I can have a meaningless fuck if I want."

Hanji gawked at him, unable to fathom what they were hearing. "Are you serious? He tried to walk out! He literally tried to do that and you lied to get him to stay! And too bad that you're lonely, have you met the guy? He's lonely too! He's fucking his teacher!"

"Then shouldn't that mean I'm doing him a favor? I'm keeping him company," Levi countered. 

"But you— you're... You—" Hanji stuttered, trying not to lose all sanity. "You are the last person he needs to keep him company!" They screamed, disgusted that all their friend could do was stand there and drink like it all meant nothing. 

"Why do you care so much about what's good for him? He's a stranger to you—"

"Because! I care because he hasn't done anything wrong and you're fucking with his head! He's just some guy who wants an honest relationship and you lie to him, claiming you can give him that because you're selfish. And because for some reason, I care about you, asshole! When he realizes you've been using him, you're gonna lose your job. And with something like this being the reason you get fired, who in their right mind would hire you? How are you gonna get along after that? You don't think! You don't take a second to think about how any of this is going to affect the future! That's why I care!"

Levi scowled at his friend. He knew they were right, but he honestly didn't care enough to do the right thing. He liked pretending far more than being truthful. Even if faking feelings was a headache, the payoff was worth it to him. "I'll be careful. I won't get fired."

Hanji stood like a shell, studying the man. "You are unbelievable."

Levi stared at his drink, sighing. "I know."

~

Eren entered his dorm, dropping down his book bag, taking a seat at his desk. Mikasa looked up from her laptop and took in a deep breath, watching her friend pull out his sketchbook and work on an assignment. She moved off her bed and hesitantly shuffled to stand by his side while still keeping some distance.

She crossed her arms, looking past Eren's shoulder at the page. "Whatcha working on?"

Eren glanced at her briefly. "Homework."

Mikasa would've rolled her eyes and said 'I know that,' but she wanted to be delicate with him. She wanted to get him to open up again. It had been a little while since she found out about him and Levi, and Eren refused to speak about the subject. But she wanted to help, even if all she could do was let her friend know he didn't have to be alone. "... What's the assignment?"

Eren sighed, leaning his chin on his free hand. "Portraits from memory."

"That's cool," Mikasa hummed. She didn't know what her duty of care was. Would it be wise to approach the subject head on? It couldn't be avoided forever. Did Eren need more time? Was this her job to push at all? "Do you wanna go to dinner when you're done?"

"I'm going out to eat."

Mikasa nodded. "That sounds fun, where to?" 

Eren paused. He glanced at her, as if that told her where he'd be going. And it did.

"Eren..."

"We're not going to talk about it."

"But we have to," Mikasa reasoned. "We can't just ignore it."

"It's none of your business."

"But you're my best friend!"

"And that doesn't change that it's not your business." Eren shut his sketchbook and started packing up his materials. 

"I want to help you..."

Eren finally made proper eye contact with her, standing up. "There's nothing to help with. There's no problem to begin with."

"That's a matter of opinion," Mikasa mumbled.

"It's not!" Eren yelled. "It's not a problem. He's good to me, he treats me with respect. Like an equal. He's a good person and it's not anyone else's job to dictate who I should or shouldn't be with." He slung his book bag over his shoulder and tried to walk out.

Mikasa blocked him. "He's twice your age, and a professor—"

"I know that, I'm not stupid!" Eren clenched his fists.

"Well, considering the choices you make, I wonder..."

Eren's look of anger dropped to one of hurt. Mikasa realized her error. "I didn't mean—"

"Fuck you." Eren pushed her out of his way and opened the door.

"I don't believe that, Eren I didn't mean that!"

Eren slammed the door and hurried out of the residence halls.

~

Levi refilled Eren's glass of wine before topping off his own drink. They'd finished dinner, now relaxing on Levi's couch. "Something bothering you, beautiful?"

Eren shrugged. "... Nothing important."

Levi narrowed his eyes at him. "You've been agitated since you got here. You're all tense... What's going on?" He leaned his side into the back of the couch, motioning for Eren to do the same. 

"... Do you... do you think I'm stupid?" Eren winced preemptively, anticipating a bad response.

Levi frowned, puzzled. "What? No. Why would I think you're stupid?" He reached out to caress the side of Eren's face, then lightly drawing his fingers back to brush through his long, tied up locks. 

Eren looked down at his lap, leaning into the touch. "My friend thinks I am..."

"Doesn't sound like a good friend," Levi commented.

Eren smiled briefly at his professor. 

Levi felt surprised that he wasn't jumping at any opportunity to get into Eren's pants. It surprised him even more that he wasn't bored to tears or irked by idle chatter or talking out his student's insecurities. He found himself enjoying his presence without the need for sex. 

"Should probably get some better friends," Eren joked. 

Levi smirked. "Yeah. Should spend time with people who don't call you stupid."

Eren shuffled closer and leaned into Levi. He would never call him stupid. Levi had only ever been kind to him, showed him affection and praise. 'Mikasa doesn't know what she's talking about,' he thought. Levi didn't make him feel bad about his choices or habits, Levi wanted to spend time with him and made the effort to. He didn't tell him to cut his hair, he listened to him without judgement, he treated him like a priority. Eren decided he'd be spending a lot more time with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I like this chapter. So much yelling.
> 
> If you liked this, please leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> My tumblrs are dr-s--art and the-witch-daddy. I'm sorry for any errors, I don't edit.
> 
> Thanks for reading!!


	17. Compromise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can’t apologize enough for how short this chapter is and for how long it took to update. Life has been so crazy as I’m sure it has been for most of you too. I’ll be replying to your comments very soon! I appreciate every one of them, I just haven’t had the time to respond. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Mikasa eyed Eren while she packed her things in a suitcase. He was just lazing around, reading on his bed. "Shouldn't you be getting your stuff together? They need us out for break by tomorrow."

Eren didn't look up from the page. "I'm staying in the dorms."

Mikasa grew nervous. She knew the reason must've had to do with him staying close to Levi. "You're not gonna stay with your family over break?"

"I'll be visiting them, it's not like I'm gonna lock myself in here for a month."

Mikasa stared, taking a pause in her work. That also meant they would be further apart until the following semester. And this was the most free time either of them had in months. The most free time they had since things got out of control. "Is it okay if I come back? For a few days at some point?"

Eren looked up from his book. "... It's your dorm too, why would I say no? You can do whatever you want."

"I meant..." Mikasa inhaled shakily. "Can I visit? So we can hang out." This was how she knew their relationship was compromised. She never would've had to ask before if she could hang out with Eren. She never would've been nervous to hear his answer. 

Eren held her gaze. This was what he'd been begging for for months. And now, he didn't think he'd want it. Mikasa was so vocal of her disapproval of his relationship that he didn't want to surround himself in that energy. "I don't know..."

Mikasa's lip trembled. "I miss you." She thought that was a strange thing to say when the other person was right in front of you. But that was the best way she could describe how she felt.

Eren chest ached. "I miss you too." He closed his book. "But I don't appreciate the way you talk to me lately. You don't realize how much it hurts to hear you talk about Levi the way you do. The way you talk about me being with him. I don't wanna hear it."

The subject was hard for Mikasa to navigate. She couldn't back away from it and say that it was fine, because she didn't believe that. But she couldn't keep pushing Eren away, it wouldn't help him at all. "You know I talk that way because I care. I want the best for you—"

"Stop it. Stop talking about him like he's taking advantage of me, it's not like that." 

"He is—"

"I said stop!" Eren interrupted her. "This is why we haven't hung out. You talk about my boyfriend like he's a monster. Do you think anyone would want to listen to that?"

Mikasa shook her head. "I know you don't want to hear it, but it's something that needs to be said!"

"Why can't you just be happy for me? Why can't you be happy someone loves me? It shouldn't matter who he is. Do you want me to be alone?"

"Of course not—"

"Then leave it alone," Eren said with a tone of finality. He wanted more than anything for all to be well with him and his best friend, but it wasn't so easy anymore. "You don't even know him... you're not trying to know him. If you really cared then you wouldn't be trying to keep me from the only person making time for me. He's making me happy and it feels like you're doing anything you can to get rid of him, and you know I don't want that."

Mikasa stared at her feet for a moment. There was no easy way to get Eren to see what the problem was. Nothing she could say would be enough for him to look at his relationship critically. "The last thing I want is for you to be unhappy or alone."

Eren looked away from her to regather his thoughts. He fiddled with his book, thinking of what he could say to maintain their friendship.

"If... if I promise to not bring up Levi, or your relationship," Mikasa started, stepping forward. "Would you want to hang out over break?" If she couldn't get him to break up with his professor, she could keep him from visiting him and work on their friendship instead.

Eren looked back at her. "... You promise?"

"I do." Mikasa nodded.

Eren sighed heavily. "I would want that." He would accept any honest companion at this point. He wouldn't allow negative talk surrounding Levi, but he missed having friends. He missed his best friend.

~

Eren nuzzled closer into Levi’s chest, his head under the other’s chin as they laid together in bed. He lazily drew circles on Levi’s pectoral muscle and wondered if this was all his teacher would want. After pondering it for a bit, he was certain that wasn’t true. Levi admitted he felt something for him, so surely he would want other things just as he did. “Levi?”

“Hm?” Levi mumbled, tired after a long evening, ready to drift off to sleep.

“... Can we go on a date sometime?”

It took everything in such an exhausted state for Levi to not immediately show his disdain for the idea. “A date?” He blinked his eyes open, his brows furrowing. He tightened his arms around Eren.

“Yeah... it doesn’t have to be anything special, just like... coffee or something.” Eren’s voice drifted off, not self conscious about his suggestion. 

Levi sighed heavily. A date was asking for trouble, not to mention it was a nuisance. It was time and effort he’d have to focus into Eren where he’d have to show interest in him and his thoughts. There would most likely be lengthy conversation and he didn’t know how to be personal with the man. He didn’t want to get emotionally caught up in anything Eren was feeling or going through, let alone talk about himself. It was just a waste of time and energy to him. “I’m not sure if that’s a good idea.”

Eren stopped drawing circles mindlessly. “Oh. Why not?”

“There’s a chance someone from the college would see us together. That might not end well for us.” The likelihood that a coworker or higher up of his would notice them and care enough to assume they were on a date was rather low. But he wouldn’t be honest with Eren.

Eren sighed. “Shit, you’re right.” 

“I’m sorry.”

“No, don’t be.” Eren kissed Levi’s chest. “It’s not like it’s your fault or anything.”

But it was, at least to some degree. Levi didn’t want to deal with Eren’s emotions, so he decided to compromise. “We can have dates that aren’t in public. We can figure something out.”

Eren smiled slightly at that. “That works.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again I’m so sorry this was such a short chapter, I just had to get something out there for you all.
> 
> If you liked it, please leave a comment or kudos!! 
> 
> I’m sorry for any mistakes, I don’t edit.  
Thank you so much for reading and for your support! <3


	18. Impatient

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I’m sorry this chapter is so short and kinda uneventful, but I wanted to get something else out to make up for that long gap and to show my appreciation for the continued support!
> 
> I’m not going to go through holidays and birthdays for this fic like I normally do, because I can’t be bothered. Also we’re so far from winter I can’t force it lol. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Eren’s mood steadily improved over winter break. Mikasa visited him more frequently than promised, the holidays had passed and been a relaxing time, and he was spending more nights with Levi. He still didn’t feel completely right with the world, but things were looking up for him. He wasn’t so alone anymore, not entirely anyways.

Levi on the other hand was irked most moments he spent with Eren that didn’t involve them getting undressed. He had simple desires, and not so simple methods of acquiring them. These days, he even baffled himself trying to recall his reasoning for entertaining a false relationship. And then he remembered. He loved sex with Eren. The more he remembered that, the more he saw clarity in Hanji’s concerns and debated staying. But he couldn’t get himself to leave.

It was now a week before classes started up again, Eren was having dinner at Levi’s house as a stay at home date. He made sure to let his professor know how much he appreciated his efforts in cooking and that he valued their time together. 

“It’s a shame I couldn’t bring you to meet my family over the holidays,” Eren mused, finishing up his meal. “I think they’d like you.”

Levi stiffened at that comment. He wasn’t convinced Eren’s family would be too happy if he brought him home, even if he wasn’t his teacher. “Yeah, that’s too bad.”

Eren hummed in thought. “Maybe in the future. Maybe after I’ve graduated.”

“... Maybe.” Levi took another bite of his food, unsure of how to respond to that. He had the feeling their relationship wouldn’t last that long, but also didn’t see himself breaking up with Eren any time soon. Either way, he had no intentions of meeting his family.

Eren reached over, setting a hand on Levi’s. “I wish you could meet with my friends.”

Levi thinned his lips. “Yeah, it’s too bad it’s not that easy.”

“I know...” Eren sighed. “I wish... I wish Mikasa at least would meet you. If things were a little easier, I think you two would get along... you’re both stubborn.”

Levi huffed out a laugh. “You think I’m stubborn?”

Eren chuckled, nodding. “A little.”

Levi smiled a bit at that. He wasn’t wrong. “What about your other friends?”

Eren’s smile faltered. He didn’t really have any other friends anymore. Jean was repulsed by him. Annie was suspicious of him. And he hadn’t made time to find new friends. “I’m not sure.”

“What about Jean? Has he come around?” Eren had since told Levi what happened when his friends found out, which gave Levi stress he didn’t need. “I’m sure he doesn’t like me already, given how he acted in my class.”

Eren shrugged. Jean still hadn’t spoken to him since finding out. “He’s... I don’t know. He might just be jealous.”

Levi stood up, taking their empty dishes over to the sink. “Jealous? Why would he be jealous?”

Eren swiveled in his chair. “Well... about halfway through the semester, he kind of asked me out.”

Levi turned around, furrowing his brows. “He asked you out?”

“Yeah,” Eren laughed humorlessly at the memory. 

Levi maintained his frown. “What did you say?”

“Obviously I told him no.”

“... Oh.” Levi looked down before shuffling over to get wine from his cabinet. “Right.” He supposed that was a silly response, seeing as Eren was so invested with him and had been for some time.

“Yeah, so maybe he’s just jealous of you because I turned him down.” Eren wasn’t sure he honestly believed that theory, but it made him feel better to make light of the way he’d been treated. 

“Well, what can I say? He should’ve been quicker than that if he really wanted you.” Levi refilled his and Eren’s glasses. “People like you don’t stay single for long, I imagine.” He tried sweetening the other man up with his words and the wine, all in an effort to move the night into his preferred direction. 

Eren smiled bashfully. “Well... before you, it was a long time since my last relationship.”

“I don’t believe that,” Levi said, taking a sip of his wine, encouraging Eren to do the same.

Eren took a few sips. “It’s true. It felt like forever.”

“That’s crazy.” Levi set his hand on Eren’s knee, watching him work on his wine. “To think no one was giving you that kind of attention.”

“Well, it’s not a problem anymore.”

Levi smirked. It was almost too easy.

~

Mikasa made the time see her other friends as well during the break. She was spending time out of town, at Jean’s house, playing video games with him. 

“Do you wanna go do something Friday before classes start up again?” Jean asked, reclining on his bean bag. 

“Can’t. I’m moving back into the dorms early so I can hang out with Eren.”

Jean made a face. “You’re still hanging out with him?”

Mikasa shot ammo at Jean’s player, irked at his comment. “Yes, I’m still hanging out with him. He’s my best friend.”

“He’s a fucking creep,” Jean mumbled.

“He’s not a creep!” Mikasa snapped, pausing the game. “I don’t like what he did anymore than you do. He made a mistake, and I’m trying to be there for him. I don’t have to agree with everything he does to be his friend.”

“I just don’t see how you can be around someone like that, knowing what he did,” Jean said crossing his arms. “Using a professor like that, it’s gross, not to mention it’s morally—“

“He’s the one being used!” Mikasa turned to face her friend fully. “He’s the one being taken advantage of! He’s not with Ackerman to get better grades, he doesn’t need to do that. Ackerman is the one at fault. Besides, weren’t you the one who wanted to go out with Eren?”

“That’s not fair! That was before I knew better.”

“And right now, Eren doesn’t know better,” Mikasa countered. “He doesn’t see what Ackerman is doing to him. And instead of judging him, I’m trying to help him.”

Jean rolled his eyes. “How can he not see what’s wrong with fucking a professor? You cannot honestly tell me he doesn’t see that that’s wrong.”

“No! He doesn’t! That’s why I need to help him.”

“He’s beyond help.” Jean reached for his controller in an attempt to resume the game, but Mikasa kept it paused. “What is your deal?”

“I get that you hate what he’s doing—“

“He’s still fucking him?” Jean interrupted. 

“Just listen! I understand you don’t like what’s going on, but I don’t see how you can be so cruel to him! You guys were friends, you got along so well, and now you’re treating him like scum. You’re not being fair to him. He’s the one being manipulated. If you want somebody to blame and look at as disgusting, then you can feel that way towards Professor Ackerman. Treating Eren like shit isn’t right.”

Jean refused to make eye contact with her. “... Whatever.”

Mikasa could only do so much. She was so torn and overwhelmed helping Eren in multiple aspects. She was busy trying to get Eren out of his own situation, helping to keep him from being alone, and trying to maintain respect for him among other people. She felt it was impossible to do it all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More interesting things will be happening soon!! 
> 
> If you liked this chapter, please leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> I’m sorry for any errors, I don’t edit. Thank you so much for reading!!!


	19. Tired and Lonesome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys are the literal best! I’m so relieved and overjoyed with the continued support, so I wrote this as fast as I could as a ‘thank you.’
> 
> Enjoy!

Levi left open mouthed kisses on Eren’s neck, tangling one hand in his student’s hair and the other gently stroking him under the sheets. Eren moaned happily, his eyes shut, smiling uncontrollably at the attention. It was early in the morning and this was how Levi saw fit to wake him up. “You’re beautiful,” he said against his throat. 

Eren writhed under his professor.

Levi tightened his grip on the other’s locks. “You have the softest hair.”

Eren beamed at the compliment. “Mm... tell me more,” he mumbled tiredly.

Levi moved to leave a kiss on Eren’s lips. “You have the most gorgeous eyes.” He may not have had feelings for him but he couldn’t deny that he was enthralled with how attractive the man was.

Eren opened his eyes to look up at the other. 

“There they are,” Levi whispered affectionately, closing in for a deeper kiss. 

Eren stretched out his arms around Levi’s shoulders and kept him close while his climax approached, smiling all the while. It was moments like this where he was glad he was honest with Levi about his feelings, so now he was completely free to care for him. Or at least, that was his understanding. 

Levi continued to stroke and pamper Eren until he finished with a low, blissful moan. Eren stared up at him, breathless. “Good morning,” Levi whispered. 

Eren grinned bashfully. “Good morning.”

“First day of classes, we don’t want to be late.”

Eren pulled a half hearted frown. “I don’t have any classes until 11.”

“And that’s my class. And don’t think I won’t give you a zero for the day if you don’t show up.” Levi placed a kiss on his student’s forehead and sat up to retrieve his clothes. 

Trying to be playful, Eren leaned up in his elbows, saying, “You wouldn’t really give me a zero, would you?”

Levi looked back at him, pulling up his pants. “Yes... I would,” he said in a tone that wasn’t to be challenged. 

Eren giggled to himself. He knew in the classroom he wouldn’t be treated any differently. Outside the classroom was a different story. He got up to clean himself off and join Levi in getting dressed.

“I’ll drop you off at your dorm so you can get clean clothes and get ready properly,” Levi said, looking through his closet to find a shirt.

“Wish I had something to eat at my dorm,” Eren yawned, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

Levi smiled back at him. “I’m not kicking you out before breakfast.”

Eren felt spoiled. 

~

It was the first day back to ‘normal,’ and Eren felt hopeful. Winter break hadn’t been so bad. He was ready to get back on track with his education, now in a happy relationship and with Mikasa making a bigger effort to make time for him. ‘Things should be easier from now on,’ he thought.

He walked into his first class for the day, Figure Drawing 2. He saw mostly familiar faces with maybe one or two students he didn’t recognize. Right in the center of the group of people waiting around for their professor, he found Annie with her arms crossed, looking bored as she ever was. He beamed as he walked up to her. 

“Hey, Annie!”

Annie regarded him warily. “... Hey.”

Eren was caught off guard with the hesitant response. He tried to shake off the weird feeling he had. “How was your break?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “... It was fine.”

Eren shifted his weight, uncomfortable. 

Annie lowered her voice so no one else would hear. “I haven’t forgotten.”

Eren’s breath hitched. Right. To her, he was still the creep sleeping with the teacher. He was still perverted and untrustworthy. “It’s... I’m—“

“Save it.” Annie looked away, refusing to make eye contact. “I don’t wanna hear it.”

“... Okay.” Eren hesitantly shuffled away. He didn’t think things would still be so sensitive with her. He didn’t think his relationship with Levi mattered that much to her. He walked over to the other side of the room, away from where the other students were mostly gathered. 

Levi entered the room with a half assed “Good morning.” The room repeated it back with less enthusiasm than him. “Welcome to figure drawing 2. If you’re here, it means you’ve successfully completed figure drawing 1. So, this class is going to be a step up from the last, we will not be revisiting basics, but you should keep them in mind when you sketch in your figures. We’re going to be paying closer attention to fine details, there’ll be a unit centered around portraits, and we’ll be practicing more with perspective.”

Eren tried to stay focused, he really did, but it was hard to balance class work with the realization that his social life wasn’t any better off than it was before. If Annie wanted to, she could tell other students to avoid Eren and she had plenty of reason to give them. If she was feeling bolder, she could rat them out to the administration which would make him even more of an outcast. Even if she never went that far, she clearly had no interest in being his friend. And she was really the only who made conversation with him in class before things went south. 

And here he was hoping that things would be looking up for him.

~

Eren received a text from Mikasa saying that her first class ended early and that the teacher left, so he was welcome to come visit if he wanted. He was in no mood to pass up that offer, so he made his way down to her class room. 

As entered the room, Jean slipped past him, making a disgusted face while doing so. Eren tried to ignore the turning sensation in his stomach as he made his way to where Mikasa was sat in front of her computer. 

“Hey, you made it!” She greeted him.

“Yeah,” Eren mumbled. “What class is this?” He asked, taking a seat beside her. 

“Digital painting,” Mikasa groaned. “This class is gonna be the death of me.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, I’m not familiar with the program we’re using and it’s just gonna be such a pain in the ass.”

Eren nodded. He wasn’t a huge fan of making digital art, so he could understand her frustration.

“How was your first class?” Mikasa asked, reclining in her chair.

Eren shrugged. “Not bad. That was figure drawing 2, so it wasn’t stressful or anything, it’s just more of what we did before.”

Mikasa bit her lip. “Is that Ackerman’s class?”

“... Mhm.” Eren couldn’t meet her eyes.

Mikasa didn’t want to diverge the conversation into a touchy subject, so she she switched gears. “Is Annie still in that class with you?”

Eren nodded.

“That’s nice that you got someone to talk to in there.”

Eren fidgeted in his seat. “Um... Annie and I... we’re not exactly friends anymore.”

Mikasa frowned. “I’m sorry, why’s that?”

“Well... it’s kinda—“

“Mikasa,” Jean interrupted, returning from getting a drink. “Can you get that whore out of my chair?”

Mikasa glared daggers at Jean. Eren’s jaw dropped slightly before he recomposed himself. Jean’s words were like a knife in his stomach, and to say them so boldly in front of other students added salt to the wound. Eren stood up wordlessly and moved to the other chair at Mikasa’s side. 

Jean went to sit down, but Mikasa kicked his chair out from under him, letting him drop to the ground. “Hey!” Jean barked up at her. “What’s your deal?”

“Don’t fucking talk to him like that!” Mikasa spat back at him. 

Eren felt guilty his presence was causing two friends to fight. Even if Jean didn’t like him anymore, he didn’t want to come between him and Mikasa. “It’s okay, Mikasa, I’ll go.” He stood up to leave.

“No, you’re not doing anything wrong,” Mikasa said. “You can stay.”

“Let the guy leave,” Jean grumbled, picking himself up off the ground to get back in his chair.

Eren stared at the ground and began making his exit. 

Mikasa gave Jean one last angered look and stood up, grabbing her book bag. “Then I’ll go too.”

Eren sighed. “It’s okay, you don’t have to—“

“No, lets go. We can get something to eat at the dining hall.” She grabbed her friend’s hand and led him out the door.

~

Eren barely touched his food at dinner. He stared at his plate, pushing around his meal with his fork. 

“What’s wrong?” Mikasa asked, finishing what she had.

Eren shrugged.

“Come on, what is it? I can help.”

Eren looked up at her. “Am I a bad person?”

Mikasa’s eyes widened. “What? No, of course not. Why would you ask that?”

Eren returned his stare back to the table, twiddling his thumbs. “... Jean hates me, Annie hates me. You’re mad at me. I can’t keep any friends.”

Mikasa sighed. She chose her words carefully. “I’m not mad at you, I’m just worried for you. And Jean’s being a judgmental prick anyway. But you’re not a bad person.”

“Annie doesn’t wanna be friends with me.”

“Who needs her?” 

Eren needed her. He needed someone at least. And Annie was at one point willing to converse with him. She lent him hair ties, helped cover for him and showed him things she thought was funny. But now she wanted nothing to do with him. “No one wants to be around me,” he mumbled.

“I do,” Mikasa said reassuringly, teaching to hold his hand across the table. “And... though you know I don’t like him and I don’t approve, Professor Ackerman does.”

Eren inhaled shakily. “I don’t want you to take this the wrong way. You’re my best and I love you, but only having two people to be around while I’m at college is really hard. It’s like I’m surrounded by people but no one wants to be associated with me.”

Mikasa’s heart hurt for him. “What about your other friends?”

“... I never made any,” Eren confessed.

Mikasa did not take any offense to Eren’s loneliness. She couldn’t imagine only being able to confide in two people, especially when one of them was someone so questionable. “What do you do on Thursday nights at 5?”

Eren looked at her confusedly. “Nothing, I think. All my classes are done by then. Why?”

Mikasa grinned. “I want you to come somewhere with me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> She’s taking him to a brothel
> 
> Just kidding. If only.
> 
> If you liked this, please leave a comment or kudos!! I’m sorry for any errors, I don’t edit. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!


	20. Around the Corner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The good, the bad, and the messy.
> 
> Enjoy!

Mikasa eagerly led Eren by the hand to the sculpting room. “This’ll be my first time too, but I know a ton of people here.”

“And what exactly is ‘here?’” Eren asked, taking in his surroundings, studying all the clay work-in-progresses, the mixed media paintings on the wall, and most notably, the students chatting and working on projects. 

“It’s the fine arts club,” Mikasa answered. “I know you’re an illustration major and not fine arts, but any major is allowed to join. A few people have been asking me to check it out.”

“... What do we do?”

Mikasa shrugged. “Anything. You can work on your class work, you can sculpt, paint, draw, and all the materials in here a free for you to use.” She found the sign in sheet on a desk and wrote down her name, motioning for Eren to do the same. 

Eren glanced around as he jotted down his signature. “I don’t know anyone here.”

“You know me. And you won’t be able to say that by the end of the club meeting.”

Eren followed closely behind Mikasa. He wouldn’t normally classify himself as shy, but given his recent experiences involving other people, he was petrified of giving the wrong first impression to potential acquaintances. 

“I’m gonna go sculpt something, you wanna join me?” Mikasa asked.

“I don’t know how to sculpt.” Eren said timidly.

“You don’t have to.” Mikasa sat in the back of the room with another student, grabbing a free smock and throwing it on. “Hey, Connie.”

“Sup, Mikasa,” the other student said, molding clay onto wire. “You finally decided to show up I see?”

Mikasa rolled her eyes, taking a seat and pulling up a clay block. “I don’t have a class during the club meetings this semester. Hope you don’t mind, I brought my best friend.” She gestured to Eren.

“Why would I mind?” Connie said. “Come on and work on something!”

Eren took a seat beside Mikasa. “I’ll just watch for now.”

Connie nodded, focusing back on his sculpture. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Eren.”

“You ever been to one of our club meetings, Eren?”

Eren shook his head. “No, this is my first time.”

“Well, if you think you see anything you wanna do, just jump right into it.”

Eren watched Mikasa and Connie work away, his friend a little less skilled than the stranger, but they both seemed to be enjoying it equally. He didn’t fancy the idea of getting his hands filthy in the clay, charcoal was bad enough in his classes. He let Mikasa and Connie make their own conversation and he tuned them out, looking around the room at the other students working away. He found a few girls drawing still lifes, and he considered joining them, drawing being his area of expertise. But he didn’t know them well enough and felt nervous leaving Mikasa’s side. He found a few other students painting. He recognized one from his general drawing class, but it wasn’t someone he ever had a conversation with. He didn’t want to paint beside them, not being confident in his skills as a painter. There were a couple of boys gluing things together as a mixed media sculpture, a few more people doodling in their sketchbooks and one student pouring resin into molds. He didn’t think he could just get up and join any of them.

“Psst!” Eren turned his head and saw two girls all the way across the room, sitting at a table, waving, trying to flag him down.

Eren furrowed his brows in confusion. He tapped his chest and mouthed the word ‘me?’ 

The girls nodded and waved for him to come over.

Eren jolted in surprise, feeling something jab his side. He turned and saw Mikasa nudging him. “Go over there,” she urged him.

“Okay...” Eren nervously stood and made his way across the room. He saw the girls light up with excitement. One was tan with brown hair tied up in a ponytail, the other was blond and petite. 

Eren reached their desk, wary. “Um—“

The brunette leaned on her elbows, bending over the desk. “You have gorgeous hair!”

Eren felt a little taken aback by her statement. His hair was as messy and scraggly as usual, tied up in a messy bun with his bangs falling loose. “I do?”

“Yeah!” The blond agreed. “How long did it take to get it that long?”

“Oh, um... a few years, I think? I don’t know, my hair grows kinda slow.” He wasn’t sure what he expected from them, but it wasn’t that. He almost never got compliments on his hair, even Mikasa begged him to cut it. Levi was really the only one to voice praises.

“Wow, it’s so nice!” The brunette continued. “What brand of conditioner do you use?”

Eren found himself smiling slightly. “Um, nothing special. Anything that doesn’t have a lot of chemicals in it.”

The two seemed to be hanging on every word. “Do you wanna make some jewelry with us?” The smaller girl asked.

“I don’t really know how...”

“We’ll teach you! Come on, sit,” the brunette demanded. “I’m Sasha, are you new?”

“Yeah. I’m Eren, I’m an illustration major.” He said, sitting down across from them.

“I’m Christa,” the blonde introduced herself. “I’m in photography.”

“I’m a fine arts major,” Sasha said. “Is this your first semester?”

Eren shook his head, easing up a little. “Second. What about you two?”

They both reported that they were also in their second semester. Christa went off, telling Eren about plans the club had for fundraisers for the art program while Sasha found glass beads that matched the colors on Eren’s shirt to get him started. He felt a little overwhelmed with the new information and his choices of beads, but it was more fun than stressful. It had been a long time since someone was so excited to be speaking with him.

~

The club meeting came to an end as everyone cleaned up their stations. Mikasa finished washing off her hands and safely storing her work, then went to check on Eren. She saw him at the jewelry table talking and laughing with two people she was familiar with. She grinned, walking up behind him. “Did you make something?” She asked, distracting him. 

He turned around eagerly, holding up two green, beaded creations of his. “I made earrings.”

Mikasa chuckled. “Do you wear earrings?”

Eren paused for a moment, realizing her point. “No...” He gave it some thought. “But... you do?” He held them out for her, hopeful, not entirely sure if she did or not.

Mikasa stared at him amusedly for a moment. “... Lucky guess.” She took the earrings and put them on. “Ready to go?”

Eren nodded, stretching his arms as he stood up.

“Eren, please tell me you’re coming back next week!” Sasha begged.

“Yeah, I gotta show you how to make a necklace!” Christa added.

Eren looked over at Mikasa, as if to ask for permission. She gestured for him to give the answer himself. “Um, yeah, I guess I will.” 

Sasha and Christa rejoiced, coming around the table to give him hugs before he left. He felt so unsure of what he did that made them like him so much, but he wasn’t about to question it.

Eren and Mikasa left the building and leisurely walked to their dorm, Eren smiling all the while.

~

Levi and Hanji clinked glasses, taking time off at a local bar. Levi needed to let off some steam after the first week of classes concluded.

“How are the students?” Hanji said, taking a swig. 

Levi shrugged. “Most of them I’ve had before, so same as ever. There are a couple new ones, don’t really have a sense yet if they’ll be trouble or not.” Levi looked blankly at his drink, reflecting on his classes. “One kid kept sneezing all over his drawing, and I almost asked him to leave. Can’t fucking stand sick people coming to class.”

Hanji tolled their eyes. “It was the first week! Give him a break, it would’ve looked bad if he didn’t show up.”

“Still should’ve stayed home out of courtesy.”

“Don’t sit there and tell me you wouldn’t have been pissed if he didn’t show up or that you wouldn’t call him a liar for skipping.”

Levi squinted at them. “... Still.” 

Hanji chuckled. “You’re such a dick sometimes.”

Levi smiled amusedly, but as he gave it more thought, his brows furrowed. He leaned on his elbows against the bar, trying to clear his mind of his guilt, but it was to no avail.

“You’re thinking about him, aren’t you?” Hanji set down their glass.

Levi sighed in annoyance. “Yeah.”

“What’s wrong? Found a new student you’re interested in pursuing.”

Levi shot a glare at his friend. “No. I’m with Eren.”

Hanji sat up, interested in his response. “Oh? But are you really loyal enough to not go after someone else? Where did the sudden fidelity for your fake relationship come from?”

“I admit, I’m an awful person. I’m a lot of things, but I won’t be adding ‘cheater’ to the list.”

Hanji scoffed. “How admirable of you,” they mocked, raising their glass to their lip.

Levi reasoned with himself that sleeping with anyone aside from Eren was unnecessary. He already had Eren for sex, so he didn’t need it from another person. And he didn’t need the headache, god forbid Eren found out. He also just didn’t have the energy to hide anything else from his student.

“How long are you gonna keep this up?” Hanji asked.

“Dunno... he’s asking to go on dates now, and it’s getting harder to find excuses.”

Hanji’s expression twisted into one of disgust. “I can’t fucking listen to you. He’s just some kid—“

“He’s not a kid.”

“Not the point!” Hanji got up off the bar stool, slamming down a few dollars, enough to pay for their drink. “He’s a good person. He just wants a nice boyfriend. He wants to go on a date and you are treating him like a pet that you decide how and when you’re seen together. If he’s such a burden to you, then break up with the guy so you’re both better off!”

Levi’s eyes widened at his friend’s volume, he curtly glanced around at surrounding people turning to look at them.

“You can find anyone else in the world to sleep with, it doesn’t have to be him! You can claim ignorance all you want, but you know damn well you’re fucking him up! And he’s too blind to see what you’re doing!” They took their glass off the counter, shaking their head. “How convenient. You’re at a bar. Pick up somebody else and let Eren go, why don’t you?” Hanji left without sparing so much as a glance at Levi.

Levi put his head in his hands, stressed out beyond belief.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you liked this, please leave a comment or kudos!
> 
> I’m sorry for any errors, I don’t edit.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!!! <3


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